Not only Danny Denzongpa, but this iconic villain was also considered to play the dreaded dacoit Gabbar Singh in Sholay, but he refused the film for one reason.
Sholay is considered one of the biggest blockbusters of Indian cinema, a landmark in Bollywood. The Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra-starrer ensemble action drama carved the careers of many actors, including Amjad Khan. The actor played the antagonist Gabbar Singh to such perfection, that it became his most memorable role.
We all have heard that Amjad Khan wasn't the first choice for the film, and initially, the makers approached Danny Denzongpa for the role. Now, we learnt that after Danny, the makers approached another actor, a popular villain of the 70s for the dreaded dacoit. So, before Amjad Khan, not only Danny but Ranjeet was considered for Gabbar Singh.
Recently, veteran actor Ranjeet spoke to Radio Nasha and revealed that when Danny was busy with Feroz Khan's Dharmatma, and was unable to do Sholay, the makers of Amitabh-Dharmendra's film approached him for Gabbar Singh, but he refused.
Why did Ranjeet refuse Gabbar Singh?
In the interaction, Ranjeet revealed that he rejected the role in Sholay to honour his friendship with Danny. "So, the offer to play Gabbar for Sholay came to me. The production people of Sholay came to me and told me to do Gabbar’s role. Danny and I had worked in a few films by that time. I told them, ‘Danny ka ghar mein aana jana hai (Danny comes to my house) so I won’t be able to do this film because he is my friend. I saw a picture that said that Danny is caught up in Afghanistan and I took the film away from him. So, I asked them that if Danny says, ‘I don’t want to do this film, give it to somebody else,’ then I don’t mind. At least I should talk with him, and if he agrees, then I will do the film. But they could not wait because the film involved so many big stars. So, this role was destined for Amjad Khan."
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