New Delhi: Sholay, a masterpiece of Indian cinema, was released in 1975 and has become a classic over the years. Directed by Ramesh Sippy, produced by his father GP Sippy and written by Salim-Javed, the film has been highly appreciated and loved by fans. Today, 49 years after its release, the real ending of the film is being discussed on social media. Yes! You read it right.

The producers filmed an alternate ending where Thakur kills Gabbar, as opposed to the film’s ending where Thakur hands over the criminal to the police. But do you know why Ramesh Sippy had to change it?

The real ending of Sholay that was censored pic.twitter.com/qjljYzVhd0— Cru (@Achari_Nimboo) February 25, 2017

Why was the original ending of Sholay changed?

In 2018, speaking at the Pune International Film Festival (PIFF), Ramesh Sippy revealed, “I had shot a different ending for Sholay, where Gabbar is killed by Thakur. But the censor board did not allow it. They were not happy to kill Gabbar with their feet… otherwise how could Thakur kill him with so much violence? Was unhappy.. He said ‘You have to change the ending’ I was not happy, but I did it.

The director shared his experiences with the Censor Board before the release of Sholay during the Emergency in August 1975.

Sholay had a star cast like Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Amjad Khan, Hema Malini and Jaya Bachchan in lead roles. The music was composed by RD Burman.