This man wanted to become a cricketer, became actor, worked in over 200 films, played only villain roles, is related to this famous Bollywood actress…, his name is…
Mac Mohan was known for playing the role of a villain in films. Mac Mohan gained fame with the role of Sambha in Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra's film 'Sholay'. Even today, people jokingly say 'Hey O Sambha Kitne Aadmi The Re…'. His film was 'Haqiqat', in which he acted as the lead actor. Mac Mohan acted in Bhojpuri, Gujarati, Haryanvi, Marathi, Punjabi, Bengali, and Sindhi films apart from Hindi films in his entire career. He has spoken dialogues in almost all Indian languages except Odia as well as in English, Russian, and Spanish films. Mac wanted to become a cricketer from the very beginning, but then he made his career in theater. By the way, very few people know that Mac was the maternal uncle of Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon.
Mac Mohan played many powerful characters in his film career. He played the character of Brij Mohan in the film 'Don'. He played the role of Rana in the film 'Kaala Patthar'. But he got the most fame from the character of Sambha in the film 'Sholay'. He wreaked havoc as Ranjit's man in the film 'Satte Pe Satta'.
He wanted to become a cricketer and learnt the nuances of acting from Mumbai's Filmalaya School of Acting. Before this, he had worked as an assistant with director Chetan Anand. Mac Mohan loved playing cricket since childhood. He came to Mumbai from Karachi with a dream of becoming a cricketer and also played for the Uttar Pradesh cricket team. But fate made him an actor instead of a cricketer.
His character 'Samba' in the 1975 film 'Sholay' became so famous that people started calling him Sambha in real life too. People still remember his dialogue 'Poore Pachaas Hazar'. When Mac Mohan saw the final trial of 'Sholay', his role was very small. Because of this, he cried. But director Ramesh Sippy said, 'If the film becomes a hit, everyone will know you as Sambha,' and that is what happened.
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NDTV
2 hours ago
- NDTV
Why Sholay Was A Flop When It First Released In Pakistan 10 Years Ago
Sholay turning 50 on August 15, 2025 is a big deal not only for India but also Pakistan. But did you know that this Ramesh Sippy classic, which was originally released in 1975, opened in Pakistani theatres just 10 years ago? What's more is that the film, publicised as 'the greatest cast ever assembled and the greatest story ever told', didn't do well at the Pakistani box office when it released on April 17, 2025. Sholay barely earned a little over Rs 3 crore during its four-week run in the cinema halls there. Pakistan's top exhibitor Nadeem Mandviwalla in an exclusive interview with NDTV revealed the reasons why Sholay flopped in Pakistan despite the film enjoying a massive fan following. When Sholay Came To Pakistan In 3D It was something new to go for, recalled Nadeem Mandviwalla, who brought Sholay to Pakistan as a prestige project to his company Mandviwalla Entertainment. And this was happening decades after the movie was released everywhere else. In all the years that passed, many Pakistanis, especially those who could afford a VCR in the late 1980s and 1990s, had already watched Sholay. "We got the rights and then it played here... You need to understand that the whole generation had changed and we could not make it as (appealing to them as we would have liked)... Everybody had already seen the film (by then). It was not that it was a new film. But it did okay, not bad. "The collection was under Rs 10 million PKR (Rs 3.22 crore INR). But that was not the real issue for us, that was how much business it would do. It was more about the fact that we wanted to bring Sholay under our portfolio of our company. My company has already done some of the very significant films so this was one of those movies which we wanted to put on our portfolio, that we have distributed this film, even if it was after 40 years," the exhibitor told NDTV. What Went Wrong Whether it was Mughal-e-Azam or Sholay releasing in Pakistan, something was amiss every time. "The coloured version of Mughal-E-Azam was released in India in 2004. By the time I got the film to Pakistan, it was 2006 and the hype had died down. The day I released the coloured version in Pakistan, it was playing on Sony TV channel. "The same thing happened with Sholay. When it came out in 3D, we could not release it simultaneously because at that time they were asking for so much money that I said it was not possible to pay that kind of cost," added Nadeem Mandviwalla. When there is hype, people go and watch the film, especially when it's already available on YouTube and TV, he said. "You have to be a die-hard fan to come back to watch the same film in cinemas. Films are all about excitement and you have to cash in on that. Both the times we were unable to do that. I don't blame the public, it was about the timing and the problems we had." "Ramesh Sippy Was Not Happy About Sholay Coming In 3D" The Pakistani exhibitor said he went to Mumbai around 2014-15 to invite Sholay director Ramesh Sippy for the film's premiere in Karachi, Pakistan. "I came to Bombay and met Ramesh sahab. But Ramesh sahab was not that happy with Sholay being converted into 3D. I wanted him to come over for the premiere of Sholay in Pakistan. But I saw his reaction so I realised he was not happy with the 3D conversion." What Sholay Means For Pakistan According to the veteran distributor, Sholay holds a lot of significance for the Pakistani audience. "As much as it has a significant role to play in Indian cinema, Sholay has a role to play wherever there is Urdu or Indian diaspora. We were very young when Sholay came out and it became a phenomenon at that time. "Since then, Sholay has been a landmark after Mughal-E-Azam. For me, it's very special. When Indian films opened up for release in Pakistan, both the films (Sholay, Mughal-E-Azam) were brought to Pakistan by me. I had that honour," he said. Both India and Pakistan have banned each other's cinema for years now. And yet, classics such as Sholay are like a shared memory between the two neighbours that are a stone's throw away from picking up a fight quite often.
India.com
3 hours ago
- India.com
This actress won 3 Filmfare Awards had a villain uncle in Sholay, she acted in more than 200 films, her name is...
Sholay is going to complete 50 years since its release. People's emotions are attached to this film and it is still considered the biggest film of the country. Every character of this film was popular. Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra played the lead roles in the film. Let's us know further. Gabbar in Sholay was the main villain In this film, the role of the main villain Gabbar was played by Amjad Khan but there were many other villains in it. There were many dangerous dacoits in Gabbar's gang, one of whom was Sambha. This name became popular because of Gabbar's dialogue 'Are O Sambha Kitne Aadmi The' and this character also became immortal. What was Mac Mohan's role in Sholay? Bollywood actor Mac Mohan played the role of Sambha in the film. He gained a lot of popularity from this role. Sambha's career was quite long. He was active from 1961 to 2010. During his 5 decade long career, he worked in more than 200 films. Do you know that he has a special relationship with a successful Bollywood actress? Mac Mohan was actually actress Raveena Tandon's maternal uncle. He was the brother of Raveena Tandon's mother Veena Tandon. He died in 2010 at the age of 72. Talking about Raveena Tandon, she is a successful actress in the industry today. Raveena Tandon has worked in many films in her 3 decade long career. She has won the Filmfare Award 3 times. Out of these, she has received 2 awards for films and one award for OTT. When was Sholay released? If we talk about the film Sholay, then this film was released in theatres on 15 August 1975. It was directed by Ramesh Sippy. Apart from Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar, Amjad Khan, Hema Malini, Jaya Bachchan and Sachin Pilgaonkar were also seen in the film.
NDTV
3 hours ago
- NDTV
Hema Malini To NDTV On Sholay Costumes: "I Had Only Three Dresses, Dharmendra Ji Had Just One"
New Delhi: The excitement continues to soar around Sholay as it is set to clock 50 years on August 15, 2025. Every character in the film, from the boisterous Basanti played by Hema Malini to the vicious Bandit Gabbar (Amjad Khan), and the everlasting friendship of Jai and Veeru (Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra), Ramesh Sippy's cult classic has garnered love from the audience over the years. In an exclusive conversation with Hema Malini on the fast-approaching special occasion, the actress exclaimed how no one focused on the costumes of the film. What's Happening While several aspects of Ramesh Sippy's Sholay can be analysed and discussed, Hema Malini veers our attention towards the costumes of the film. She exclaims, "No one is talking about the costumes in the film! Dharam ji had only one costume. There was no need for any costume designers or anything. I had only three dresses to wear." Hema Malini elaborates, "One of my costumes was in white and the other one in black. The third was yellow, which you see in the Holi sequence." She laughs and adds, "I jokingly even said that, at least for Holi, give me a new dress. But it got dirty immediately. I used to tell the dressman to clean my costumes and keep them. But the next day it would come back even dirtier. Ramesh Sippy had said no ironing or anything. The costumes should look dirty; it has to be like this, and you have to wear this." "The audience will never focus on the costumes of the film. That's the beauty of it. Everybody looked the part, set against the backdrop of a village," concludes Hema Malini. About Sholay Crafted by Salim-Javed, the plot revolves around two notorious criminals, Jai and Veeru (Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra), who are hired by a former jailer, Thakur Baldev Singh (Sanjeev Kumar), as he seeks vengeance to bring down the vile bandit Gabbar Singh (Amjad Khan). In A Nutshell Hema Malini spoke of simpler times while shooting for Sholay, where there was no costume designer on set. She spoke about having just three dresses throughout the film, and Dharmendra ji having just one.
