Amitabh Bachchan recalls playing rummy with Dharmendra on way to Sholay shoot: ‘Hum ek he gaadi mein set tak jaate the’

Amitabh Bachchan has said that he used to pay rummy with Dharmendra, when they travelled to the sets during the shooting of their iconic film, Sholay. Amitabh was speaking on his popular game quiz show Kaun Banega Crorepati. The veteran actor is currently hosting the fourteenth season of the show. (Also read: Dharmendra shares photo from Sholay, calls Amitabh Bachchan most talented actor)

When one of the contestants, Deepesh told Amitabh that he loves Sholay, and finds the behind-the-scenes photos of the actors iconic, Amitabh shared an anecdote from the time when he worked on the film directed by Ramesh Sippy. “Dharam ji aur hum toh ek he gaadi mein set tak jaate the, takriban 45-50 minutes lagte the hotel se set tak pahuchne mein, saath mein baith ke cards, rummy khelte travel karte the (Dharamendra ji and I used to travel by the same car and it took us around 45-50 minutes to reach the sets from the hotel. We used to sit together and play cards, we played rummy while travelling).”

The contestant also asked Amitabh about the bond he shares with the villains of the films that he works on. Amitabh said, “We are all very good friends. Once the shooting ends, we chat and enjoy together. When there are action scenes involved, we even apologise saying ‘I will have to hit you, forgive me. You may hit me later if you wish’.”

The actor also said that the director would stay in the village that he created for the shooting of Sholay. The action team that came from abroad introduced many safety nets for action sequences in the film, he added. Amitabh also cited the example of Akshay Kumar and lauded him for performing his own action scenes.

Sholay, that released in 1975, continues to be one of the most iconic films in the careers of the actors and is also considered one of the Hindi classics. It also featured Amjad Khan, Jaya Bachchan, Hema Malini and Sanjeev Kumar. The iconic writer duo Salim–Javed wrote the film.

Earlier on the show, Deepesh talked about the tough time he faced in his career and requested Amitabh to recite a few lines from the book Madhushala by the actor’s father, legendary poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan. Amitabh obliged him and recited the lines ‘Madiralay jane ko ghar se chalta hai peene wala, alag alag path batlate sab, par mai ye batlata hu, raah pakad tu ek chala chal paa jayega Madhushala. (When an alcoholic leaves home for the bar, people guide them through various routes, they must simply stick to one and they will reach the destination).”

He added, “This is an inspiration, it is the philosophy of life. No matter what is your path, stay true to the path and you will reach the destination.”