Restored 4K version of Sholay to premiere at Indian Film Festival of Sydney 2025

Guwahati: The Indian Film Festival of Sydney (IFFS), organised by the team behind the globally renowned Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), proudly announces that the newly restored version of Sholay will serve as its centrepiece film this October.

The festival, running from 9 to 11 October, will celebrate Indian cinema over three vibrant days.

One of the most iconic films in Indian cinema history, Sholay has undergone meticulous 4K restoration by the Film Heritage Foundation in collaboration with Sippy Films.

The restoration process, years in the making, involved locating a rare colour reversal print in London and recovering original camera negatives and long-lost deleted scenes from a warehouse in Mumbai.

This effort has revived the film’s visuals and audio to extraordinary quality, returning it to its original 70mm glory.

Most significantly, the restored version includes the original ending envisioned by director Ramesh Sippy, in which Thakur avenges his family by killing Gabbar Singh.

The restored Sholay had its world premiere earlier this month at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and will now screen in Sydney.

Festival Director Mitu Bhowmick Lange expressed her excitement about bringing this milestone screening to Sydney, saying, “Sholay is more than a film—it weaves itself into the fabric of Indian storytelling, memory, and myth. To bring back its original ending, after all these years, is to restore not just a different final scene, but the full vision of its creator. As we mark 50 years of Sholay, we honour the courage of cinema to challenge, to endure, and to be reborn in its truest form. We are thrilled that Sydney audiences will now see the film as it was always meant to be seen.”

In addition to Sholay, the festival will showcase a carefully curated selection of over 15 films spanning languages, genres, and formats.

It will also feature filmmaker conversations, retrospectives, and panels that celebrate both the legacy and the future of Indian cinema.

The Indian Film Festival of Sydney continues to bridge cultures through storytelling, honouring the past while championing contemporary voices.