Sholay delivers the goods, all right. It has, quite literally, everything -- action, adventure, romance, drama, comedy (very broad), musical numbers -- all superbly directed by young Ramesh Sippy.

Sholay is a grand, maximalist revel. It's the kind of movie that, while it may pass into the status of so many older movies more talked about than seen, it became that thing by being great.

You can divide Hindi cinema into two eras, pre-and-post Sholay. It is a landmark. They don't make 'em like this anymore.

Sholay covers every base, works all the emotions, and even today, when Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra show up, thunderous ovations result.