Some scholars have indicated that Sholay contain homosocial themes . Ted Shen describe the male bonding shown in the film as bordering on camp style . Dina Holtzman , in her book Bollywood and Globalization : Indian Popular Cinema , Nation , and Diaspora , state that the death of Jai , and resultant break of bonding between the two male leads , is necessary for the sake of establishing a normative heterosexual relationship ( that of Veeru and Basanti ) .