5 revelations by Diljit Dosanjh about Bollywood, being a Sikh actor: ‘I have only one weakness…’

Funny man Diljit

Diljit Dosanjh has a great knack for comedy. No, here we don’t only speak about his movies, but the times he got up close and personal off-screen. Remember his Koffee With Karan episode with Badshah? It was a bag of delight, and unexpectedly so. Because most audience had expected Diljit to be his calm, reserved self like he is in most of his interviews. But host Karan Johar managed to get a little bit under Diljit’s skin (in a good way), where we saw DD dropping one-liners after the other. The first one was probably the best, delivered with a straight face, where Diljit confessed that even when he was a kid, he would go to the gurudwara to pray for only one thing — “Bhagwan, main kisi ko naa janoon, mujhe sab jaane (Dear God, please make me famous).”

Later in the show, Diljit opened up about his (former) fascination with American celebrity Kylie Jenner, past relationships, prompting more laughter from KJo and Badshah.

When Diljit spoke about his weak spot, the English language

“Ek hi kami hai mere mein bas, mujhe English nai aati (I have only weakness, my lack of knowledge about the English language).” This is what Diljit had said while speaking to film critic Anupama Chopra in mid 2020. The singer has always been honest about his so-called blind spot. Many, in his position, would cover up their insecurities and would not elaborate upon it in an interview that so many people would later watch. However, Diljit has always been bold, and has been quick to admit what he doesn’t know. He did the same during the aforementioned conversation with Chopra, adding, “Ye ho jati to main aur successful hota life mein (If I had command over English, I would have been more successful).”

The Bollywood connection 

Till date, Diljit Dosanjh has worked in a handful of Hindi films, including Udta Punjab, Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari, Good Newwz, Arjun Patiala, Soorma and Phillauri. In a BBC interview with Haroon Rashid, Dosanjh had candidly spoken about why he was previously reluctant to go to Karan Johar’s Dharma office in Mumbai. Presumably talking about Good Newwz, Dosanjh said that he had been offered a movie from the said production house once before, but they ended up giving that part to someone else. So once they again called him in, Dosanjh had his reservations. “Mujhe nai laga tha ye log film denge, main jana nai chahta tha…Unhone audition nai karwaya. Aur kehte to phir main karta bhi nai, kyunki mujhe pehle nai film di, to main pehle hi gussa tha (I was not sure whether they would give me the role, I didn’t want to go. Dharma did not audition me, they gave me the script. Had they asked me to audition, I would not have done the movie, since I was anyway upset with them for backing down on their previous offer).”

Later, last year, when Anupama Chopra asked Diljit whether he was not very happy doing Hindi films, Diljit said, “Not everything needs to be put into words. The face can tell you the entire story.”

Did you know this about Diljit Dosanjh?

In the same BBC interview, while talking about attending parties and being attracted to all the limelight that showbiz has to offer once you become popular, the singer-actor said that he is a very ‘detached person.’ “I am not addicted to any thing per se. I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, I have never ever touched any drugs. The only thing I do when I need to refresh myself is speak Gurbani while taking a shower in the morning. That is all I need to take a breather, and I am ready to face the day,” the singer said.

Being a Sikh actor

“People used to say this a lot earlier, when I was about to start making movies, and I am talking about Punjabi films here, not even Hindi movies. ‘He is a Sardar, he cannot be seen in movies.’ But then I did one movie, that became a hit, and then more people started turning up with more offers, and that is how it began,” Diljit had said of his turn as a lead star in features. However, Dosanjh had to battle the same kind of stereotype when the people he had worked with in Punjabi movies were looking to cast a face for their Hindi-language project — “Diljit ko le nai sakte, Sardar hai, Hindi wale thode isse pasand karenge. Par mujhe Hindi movie se hi offer aa gaya (They did not want to take me, my own people with whom I had given hits in Punjabi movies. They thought that people of the Hindi belt would not like me. But later, Bollywood itself turned up at my door with a movie, and the rest is history).”