What Sachit Thinks

AK Hangal is an actor I admire, no I worship. In Sholay, his role was that of a blind man, and to practice, he employed a method what he called "psycho-technique". He felt what it was to be blind by traversing eons back to the very beginning of life, when blind amoeba swam in the dark waters. That helped him get that 'gaze'.  Imam sahab, the character he portrayed, was the conscience of the film and he had some memorable dialogues. One of them is the subject of this post. And this time around, I'm trying something different. A well-wisher, who I admire a lot, gave me valuable tips on writing. I hope I have been able to incorporate some of them. Muhavra: Kabr Mein Paanv Latke Hona (कब्र में पांव  लटके होना ) At 1h.57m, Gulzarilal (the postman) is reading a letter from Mukaitullah (the Imam's brother-in-law) that Ahmed's job has been confirmed and to send him to Jabalpur. Ahmed (Imam's only son) walks in (after having shampooed his hair that day) and imp...

I'll be upfront with you. There are a few, in fact very few scenes, where Jai and Veeru don't do justice to either their brains or their brawns. I'm ashamed to bring you one such scene from Sholay. Being a massive Sholay fan myself, my hands tremble as I write this, but the reportage is important, even if to show that the makers of Sholay were only human. Phrase: Ek Galti Ki Thakur Sahab, Humein Tijori Kholkar Dikhadi (एक गलती की ठाकुर साहब, हुमें तिजोरी खोलकर दिखादी ) But first, the analysis of the phrase. Having worked in the corporate world for more than 25 years, I've seen this particular phrase used the most number of times, mostly to describe a deal when one gets to know vital information about the other party, unwittingly revealed by the party itself. And this piece of information gives the other party leverage, or advantage in the deal.  For example, in a competitive RFP sales situation, you get hold of an email (by accident) where the client has placed you as N...

I must confess that bringing this series of Sholay nuggets to you has been an immensely joyful experience. The many hours and days of research, thinking and writing have provided me an escape from the otherwise dull period of the wretched lockdown. And I hope you are enjoying reading it too! In this episode, I'm digging out a proverb that is neatly ensconsed in the famous ' Kitne Aadmi The ' scene. Muhavra: Kisika Namak Khana (किसिका नमक खाना)     Did you realise that Gabbar Singh (the Late Amjad Khan) is introduced well after the first hour of the film? Surprising, considering the import and gravity of the character, but Salim-Javed were true masters at the art of storytelling, and they surely had very good reason to do so. Anyway, when Gabbar is diabolically playing the Russian Roulette of bullets with the three hapless dacoits, at 1h.10m, Kaalia (the Late Viju Khote) s-s-s-s-stammers, ' S-S-S-Sardar, Maine Aapka Namak Khaya Hai, Sardar .'   To which, we all k...

And ladies and gentlemen, I soldier on, in my quest to write about my observations and thoughts on the 1975 cult classic, Sholay. If you've landed on this page directly, do check out the eight nuggets that I've unearthed so far: One - Oont Pahad Ke Neeche Two - Kala Akshar Bhains Barabar Three - Loha Garam Hai, Maardo Hathoda Four - Joon Nahin Rengti Kaan Par Five -Zamindar Ki Bekari Six - Ghoda Ghas Se Dosti Karle To Khayega Kya? Seven - Loha Lohe Ko Katata Hai Eight - Aam Ke Aam Guthliyon Ke Daam And so here I am, on the ninth nugget, and I'm talking about a phrase used in the film that has some interesting perspectives. Phrase: Khota Sikka To Dono Hi Taraf Se Khota Hota Hai (खोटा सिक्का तो दोनो ही तरफ से खोटा होता है)   " Jai, tune meri jaan bachane ke liye, itna bada dhoka diya hai? " is what Veeru surmises during Jai's death scene, and he realizes that Jai had been fooling Veeru all along by flipping a coin with heads on both sides.  That coin was always ...

This happens to be one of my most favourite proverbs used in the film Sholay. Why you might ask? Well, a) I love mangoes and b) I own a mango orchard. :) And I also have an interesting story to tell related to this muhavra . Read on. Muhavra: Aam Ke Aam Guthliyon Ke Daam (आम के आम गुठलियों के दाम)  The scene is this. Imam saab is climbing down the steps of the mosque, when he is accosted by Basanti. Interrupting Basanti's bak bak, Imaam saab requests Basanti to knock some sense into Ahmed to take up the job of the bidi -maker in Jabalpur. Ahmed arrives at that moment and Basanti says (at 0h57m), " Yun to humein bephijool baat karne ki aadat to hai nahin, lekin sochlo yeh, karkhana bidi ka hai, jab tak dil chaha kaam kiya, nahin to aaram se bidi pee li. yaani ke yeh to to wahi misaal hui, ke aam ke aam guthliyon ke daam. "   Aam Ke Aam Guthliyon Ke Daam Loosely translated, she says that you can work as much as you want, and when you want, you can even smoke up a bidi . The...

In case, you've not been following, I've been writing about nuggets hidden in the movie Sholay, that are being presented a bit hatke (differently). And in this episode, I'm choosing a proverb that always has me puzzled. Muhavra: Loha Lohe Ko Katata Hai (लोहा लोहे को काटता है)  During the 40th minute, Thakur sahab and his minion Ramlal meet Jai and Veeru at this half-way house. Thakur is kind of giving a supari (contract) to these two for catching Gabbar Singh (the first time his name is mentioned in the movie). Jai, the smarter one is curious why Thakur chose them for this task even though they are baddies? " Aapki nazron mein, hum bhi to chor-badmaash hain. Phir us daku ko paadne ke liye, hum dono ko kyon chuna? " Thakur replies with an air of triumph that only iron cuts iron. " Isliye, ke loha lohe ko katata hai. "  The English equivalent proverb is "diamond cuts diamond". You know the meaning, it takes something of similar strength to defeat...

Back to muhavras . And this time (the sixth of this series), I've chosen a proverb that is profound indeed. In many ways, it teaches us the meaning of life. I've also tried to give the origin a creative twist. Hope no one is offended. Muhavra: Ghoda Ghas Se Dosti Karle To Khayega Kya? (घोड़ा घास से दोस्ती करले तो खाएगा क्या ?)  This occurs when Basanti is dropping off Jai and Veeru to Thakur sahab's house in Ramgarh. At (46m), Veeru offers her the Rs. 2 fare, as agreed at the start of the trip, but Basanti says that although she doesn't feel like taking the fare from the goodfellas, but if the horse befriends grass, how will it survive? One of the meanings of the proverb is that if you provide a service, don't do it for free. But there is a larger, more profound meaning. And that meaning is hidden in the Mahabharata, more specifically, the Bhagvad Gita. Here's the story. Before the battle, Arjuna sees that the Kauravas, despite being the enemy, are also littered...

I'm now breaking tradition and for the first time, not talking about a muhavra , but an interesting phrase used in the movie Sholay. By the way, if you've reached this page directly, check out the other nuggets that I've painstakingly unearthed from the movie hitherto: One - Oont Pahad Ke Neeche Two - Kala Akshar Bhains Barabar Three - Loha Garam Hai, Maardo Hathoda Four - Joon Nahin Rengti Kaan Par Phrase: Zamindar ki bekaari (ज़मींदार की बेकारी) First the facts, this occurs at the top half of the movie, (42m.25s) to be precise. The scene is that Jai and Veeru have landed at the station (which station? - trivia question for later) and Basanti is outside with her tanga .  She starts her non-stop spiel and instead of simply asking where they want to go, she gives a mighty bhashan.   Basanti saying 'kisi jameendar ki bekaari thodi hai, ke marji na marji karna hi pade' To make the point that she is not forcing them to board the tanga , she sa...

This is the fourth of the series, and this time I've picked a muhavra very few people know exists in the movie.  Muhavra: Kaan Par Joon Na Rengna (कान पर जूँ न रेंगना) Occuring at the end of the 54th minute, the scene is where Basanti is feeding Dhanno and Mausi calls out to Basanti and says, " Ari O chhokariya, din bhar hawa-hawai ghoomti ho. Magar main koi kaam boloon, to joon nahin rengti kaan par. "  Mausi telling Basanti ' Joon nahin rengti kaan par ' I have spent a lot of time trying to research the origin of this proverb, especially since it's a bit odd, but haven't come up with anything. So let me come up with my own theory! What the proverb is trying to say is that there's no point telling someone something, with the English equivalent being 'Falling on deaf ears'. Literally, it means 'Lice don't crawl near the ears'. Hain?!  Odd, isn't it? But it so happens that lice need human blood to live. Head lice usually stay clo...