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• usman khawaja said...

  Posted on Apr 20 2008 09:28 scorching massala in the indian mid day sun
  this hugely entertaining yet moving stylish master-epic from ramesh sippy works as an indian western as well as a human drama on multiple levels,its characters are multi -dimensional though simplistic ,they are naive yet stylish and they drip charm with every line they deliver by the pen of the intelligent duo-saleem javed ,who wrote this legendary cinematic epic tale of dacoits in india.
  the story about thakur-sanjeev who is punished by a lethal dacoit king gabbar-amjad khan for arresting him and convicting him as a police officer is rather routine revenge drama.
  thakur has his entire family massacred ,while only his daughter-in-law[jaya ]escapes the brutal act ,he himself has his arms chopped off to be left to dwindle as a hapless cripple ,rather then dead .but he has 2 cards up his sleeve ,veeru-dharmendra and jai-amitabh ,2 ex-conmen who he knows can redeem his vengeance from gabbar.
  the movie though is more then that as it attempts a look at rural india and its socio-political structure ,where the masses live in fear of renegade dacoits ,the delicate relationship between hindu-muslim neighbours ,the joys and vicissitudes of the common silent majority and their ambitions .
  it celebrates the indian woman by giving her dignity as a the tonga-driver -basanti [hema malini ],and as the takurs bereaving widowed daughterinlaw but its chief characters are the evil gabbar and the victim thakur-brilliantly acted by amjad-sanjeev on opposite sides of the law,who set the stage for a terrifying and really memorable finale,with excellent set pieces from a train robbery to a dacoit attack on an indian village with the carnival of the HOLI festival in process.
  it saddens you with its violent killings of the innocent but brings you deadpan humour with brilliant pantomime comedy on a tonga and a watertank,it provides every emotion and strikes every chord in your heart and mind,this also reflects a technical maturity and finesse for indian action thrillers which was achieved with the aid of international stunt men and no expense was spared to create an authentic epic,the screen speaks for itself as no words can describe the action and emotion in this gem,hema as basanti and amjad as gabbar have become part of the folklore in india and abroad.RDBURMAN gave a haunting but melodious sound to the stunning visuals as befitted the k.mahajan camerawork and ultimately the credit goes to the captain of the team ,ramesh sippy who virtually succeeds in every frame and coherently brings this delicious massala western together in a flawless manner.
  shole is not derived from seven samurai or professionals ,but rather from the spaghetti western style of sergio leone epics where an operatic style combines with a wider emotional appeal in an overwrought but affective approach to sate your soul and senses ,and this is where it becomes great cinema .
  also raj khosla dacoit dramas like mera gaon mera desh and kache dhaage were imperative in launching this epic and the look is similar to those worthwhile movies as well -but in its own right shole is unique despite being familiar and it has never been sucessfully emulated despite umpteen attempts .
  trivia -try to see the origonal directors cut where the ending is much more realistic trical version -forced by the censors .

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