When Amitabh Bachchan Revealed That Dharmendra Shot Real Bullet On Sets Of Sholay

The Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra-starrer Sholay directed by Ramesh Sippy is such a cult classic of Indian cinema that it has not lost its relevance and popularity even after 47 years of its release. We still keep all our work aside and stay glued to our television sets whenever the iconic movie is aired.

He was conversing with CRPF DIG Preet Mohan Singh, a contender who had informed the actor that he was a big admirer of the film. When the action reached its climax, Singh had advised that Dharmendra should have grabbed extra ammo, which might have just rescued Vijay, the role played by Amitabh, from certain death. Dharmendra nearly fired a real bullet at Amitabh during the sequence, according to Big B.

“Dharam ji was down below when we were filming that scene, and I was up on the hill. Dharam ji removes the ammunition from a chest after opening it. He attempted it once and was unable to pick up the bullets; he then tried it a second time but failed. Dharam ji became really irate.

“I’m not sure what he did, but when he loaded the cartridge into the weapon, real bullets were inside! He discharged the gun because he was so irate about not obtaining the right shot. I was standing on the slope when the bullet passed by my ear, making a “whoosh" sound. He had actually shot a bullet. I escaped unhurt. So, absolutely, there were numerous instances like this during the film and Sholay was indeed a special film," he said during the show.