Veteran actor Asrani has appeared in many legendary films over the years, but his jailer performance in Ramesh Sippy’s smash hit Sholay is still well-received. Although he had previously been in numerous films, the actor admitted that this was his first time ever giving an audition.
The actor claimed in an interview with Bollywood Thikana that the film’s director Ramesh Sippy was suggested his name by the writing team of Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar. He was astonished to learn the level of expectations the writers and the director had when the actor was contacted to discuss the part.
“Salim-Javed must have seen me somewhere and they told Ramesh Sippy that ‘he would fit in jailer’s role’ and when they called me to the office, Salim-Javed both were there and director Ramesh Sippy was there. Javed Akhtar narrated the dialogue ‘Hum angrezo ke zamaane ke jailer hai’ and I was surprised listening to it, if I will be able to talk about it or not. So he said that it’s a matter of 3-4 days and for this, we will take your test,” Asrani shared.
The actor further added, “I had done so many films and no one had ever asked me to take a test. So, I asked ‘what kind of test will it be?’. They said, ‘how will he (jailer) talk, dress up and what kind of behaviour he will have’. So, I thought to myself that this is too much of a task. Later they called a wig maker and got a wig like (Adolf) Hitler made and showed me a book from World War 2 where there were 10-12 poses of Hitler and said that ‘we want this’.”
The actor shared how he got into the skin of the offered role. “I wore those clothes and walked and showed it to them…I tell this to everyone that Hitler used to provoke the entire nation with his lectures. Whenever he would come to give public speeches, he would provoke youngsters so much that youngsters were ready to give their lives. So all acting institutes in US, Poland, Germany have his recorded voice to hear. Our teacher was also from New York and he had heard his voice and he suggested it,” added Asrani.
In addition to Amitabh Bachchan, Dhamendra, Hema Malini, Jaya Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, and Amjad Khan, the film also starred Hema Malini. The humour and plot of the movie are regarded classics, and Asrani’s character is among its most enduring images.
