This legendary villain was also considered for Sholay’s Gabbar Singh before Amjad Khan, but he turned it down because

A Bollywood classic, Sholay is regarded as one of the greatest hits in Indian movie history. Several performers, including Amjad Khan, had their careers shaped by the ensemble action drama starring Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra. The actor was so good as the adversary Gabbar Singh that it became his most remembered part.

As everyone is aware, Danny Denzongpa was originally considered by the film’s producers for the part, not Amjad Khan. We also know that the filmmakers considered another actor, a well-known criminal from the 1970s, to play the infamous dacoit after Danny. Hence, Danny and Ranjeet were both considered for Gabbar Singh prior to Amjad Khan.

In an interview with Radio Nasha, veteran actor Ranjeet recently said that Danny was asked for Gabbar Singh by the producers of Amitabh-Dharmendra’s film, but he declined since he was working on Feroz Khan’s Dharmatma and couldn’t perform Sholay.

Why declined Gabbar Singh, Ranjeet?

During the conversation, Ranjeet disclosed that he turned down the Sholay job in order to maintain his connection with Danny. “I was approached with the option to play Gabbar for Sholay. I was approached by the Sholay production team, who instructed me to play Gabbar. By then, Danny and I had collaborated on many movies. I told them I wouldn’t be able to make this film since Danny is my buddy and Danny ka ghar mein aana jana hai (Danny comes to my home). I snatched the film away from Danny after seeing a photo that said he was enmeshed in Afghanistan. I thus asked them whether it would bother them if Danny said, “I don’t want to do this film, give it to somebody else.” I should at least have a conversation with him, and I will shoot the movie if he agrees. But since there were so many well-known actors in the movie, they were impatient. Amjad Khan was thus suited for this part.”