NEW DELHI: ‘Sholay’, one of India’s most celebrated films of all time, is set to create magic on the big screen once again with the premiere of its fully restored, uncut version at the prestigious Il Cinema Ritrovato Festival in Bologna, Italy.The screening, commemorating the film’s 50th anniversary, will take place on June 27 at the open-air Piazza Maggiore, said a press release.Featuring an ensemble cast of Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Hema Malini, Sanjeev Kumar, Jaya Bacchan and Amjad Khan, Sholay was written by Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar and directed by Ramesh Sippy.The film is considered an inalienable part of Indian pop culture due to its popular characters like Jai, Veeru and Thakur as well as Gabbar Singh, one of the iconic villains of Hindi cinema, and plenty of dialogues and action sequences.”Some things in life remain permanently etched in your mind. ‘Sholay’ is one such film,” said Amitabh Bachchan, who played the role of Jai in the movie.He also recalled the “unforgettable experience” of shooting the movie.”At the time I had no idea that it would be a watershed for Indian cinema. Its dramatic change in fortunes from being declared an unsuccessful venture, to its record-breaking box office run was an emotional rollercoaster for all of us.””It’s wonderful that the Film Heritage Foundation has restored ‘Sholay’ and that they have managed to locate and include the original ending as well as some deleted scenes in the restoration. I hope that even 50 years later, the film will capture the imagination of new audiences across the world,” he added.
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