Javed Akhtar set the record straight on ‘Sholay’, ‘Zanjeer’ origin stories

New Delhi, Sep 23 : Veteran screenwriter and lyricist Javed Akhtar has said that the iconic Bollywood film Sholay was not based, as was rumoured, on the classic western Once Upon a Time in the West, which was directed by Sergio Leone.

"As I have said, we (Salim and Javed) were influenced by Sergio Leone.

But Sholay was not based on his epic film.Critics also said Zanjeer was based on Dirty Harry," Akhtar writes in the recently released book, Talking Life: Javed Akthar in Conversation with Nasreen Munni Kabir.

He points out that Dirty Harry was released in December 1971 and Zanjeer in May 1973.

It would have been impossible for them in those pre-Google days to have written the screenplay (inspired by Dirty Harry), and then have the film shot, edited and released in such little time.

"It is all rubbish.

No film was a remake or based on any other film," Akhtar writes.

He says the basic story of Zanjeer was Salim Khans brainchild."Later we wrote the screenplay together.

Yes, Dirty Harry was remade in Hindi, though not by us -- Salim and Javed.It was called Khoon Khoon and turned out to be a big flop," Akhtar recalls.

He writes that the only common point between Zanjeer and Dirty Harry was the profile of their heros -- two angry police officers.

"I think the Zanjeer hero has more layers.

Whenever some Indian film critics saw a film of ours, they assumed it had to be a copy and couldnt believe we (Salim and Javed) could think up ideas ourselves," Akhtar notes.

"Think of the twist in Don.

Vijay is planted in a gang by a police officer to expose the bad guys, then the police officer gets killed in the line of duty," Akhtar continues."Without the police officer to back up his story, Vijay has a hard time convincing the police that he is an undercover agent, even as the gang guesses hes a plant.

"So, we have a situation where both the police and the gang are after Vijays blood.What a fantastic twist.

All Salim Sahib," Akhtar writes in the book.

dan/srb