AUGUST 3, 2023
Adil Hussain’s fascination with Bollywood’s cult classic, Sholay began when he was only 12 years old. Hailing from Assam, he had been drawn to acting since the age of eight and was so enthralled by the 1975 blockbuster that he even skipped school to watch the iconic film starring Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Amjad Khan, Hema Malini, and Jaya Bhaduri, as per a report by Khaleej Times.
The enthralling plot of the classic film left an everlasting impact on Adil who went on to forge his own path in the Indian film industry.
So needless to say, it came as a shock to the 59-year-old actor when he found out that one of the most iconic scenes from his favourite film was actually inspired and copied from the 1968 American classic Once Upon A Time In The West.
The scene shows a gang of outlaws ruthlessly killing the members of a family, and every Sholay fan can instantly relate it to the scene from the Bollywood film which shows Thakur’s family being mercilessly killed by Gabbar Singh and his army of robbers.
‘Ha ha… Who would have thought that portions of one of the most watched/ Admired films in India will be a copy of this film below… Probably you already knew that!? .. But didn’t..,’ the actor wrote on Twitter.
“When I got a message from a friend of mine with that clip, I felt a little shocked, I thought this film was original, like really, really original,” he was quoted by Khaleej Times.
He added that Sholay was a film that moulded him into the actor he is today.
“It was one film that we saw when we were young, I think I was in the sixth standard when it came. Later, I don’t know how many times I saw the film,” he said.
“I know all the lines of all the characters. In fact, as a stand-up comedian those days in Assam, I used to do the Gabbar Singh’s lines, Bachchan’s lines and Dharmendra’s lines. It’s something which is so close to my heart and I felt shocked and hurt almost,” he added.
He also acknowledged that while it is acceptable to take inspiration from iconic films, it is not okay to copy someone else’s work.
Adil has worked in acclaimed movies such as English Vinglish, Parched, What Will People Say, Life Of Pi and many more.
Courtesy/Source: India Times / PTI
