**Sydney Film Festival to Screen ‘Sholay’ with Original Ending**
*By Shreya Mukherjee | September 24, 2025, 1:41 PM*
The iconic Bollywood film *Sholay*, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Hema Malini, and Jaya Bachchan, is set to be screened at the Indian Film Festival of Sydney (IFFS) with its original ending. This follows a successful screening at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), where audiences experienced the film as director Ramesh Sippy originally intended.
The Indian Film Festival of Sydney will take place from October 9 to 11.
### Restored Version Features Original Ending
The original ending of *Sholay* shows Sanjeev Kumar’s character, Thakur, killing the notorious villain Gabbar Singh. However, this ending was initially rejected by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) for being too violent. As a result, the filmmakers shot an alternate ending in which Thakur hands over Gabbar Singh to the police.
Thanks to recent restoration efforts, the original ending has now been brought back, allowing audiences to see the film in its intended form.
### Festival Details and Audience Demand
The decision to screen *Sholay* with its original ending at IFFS met with overwhelming demand from film enthusiasts.
Mitu Bhowmick Lange, director of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), which is presenting the Sydney festival, said, “To bring back the film’s original ending after all these years is to restore not just a different final scene but the full vision of its creator.”
This screening offers a unique opportunity to experience one of Bollywood’s most legendary films as it was meant to be seen.
https://www.newsbytesapp.com/news/entertainment/sholay-to-screen-at-another-film-festival/story
