Jassie Gill says Diljit Dosanjh helped to change how Sardars were viewed in Bollywood: ‘Punjabis aren’t comedians’

In the upcoming Eid release Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, Jassie Gill plays one of Salman’s brothers in the film. The Hindi feature is one of the biggest films the singer-actor has been a part of. He is one of the several Punjabi actors including Diljit Dosanjh, Ammy Virk and Harrdy Sandhu who balance their time between both industries. Jassie credited Diljit for changing the way Punjabi artistes were viewed in Bollywood. Earlier, they mostly used to be stereotyped as the comic relief in Hindi films. (Also read: Diljit Dosanjh shares behind-the-scenes look at Coachella performance, poses with Diplo. See pics)

After his film debut in the Punjabi comedy Mrs & Mrs 420, Jassie mostly worked in his native language. He made his Hindi film debut with Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi in 2018 alongside Diana Penty, Sonakshi Sinha, Jimmy Sheirgill, Piyush Mishra, and Ali Fazal. Jassie also acted in the Hindi films Panga (2020) with Kangana Ranaut and Kya Meri Sonam Gupta Bewafa Hai? (2021). Dijit made his Hindi debut with Udta Punjab (2016). Jassie and Diljit have also lent their voices to several Bollywood soundtracks.

Speaking to Mid-Day, the singer-actor shared, “We used to talk about this in Punjab. Earlier in Bollywood, Sardars were shown as comedians. Their look was not even authentic, especially the way they wore turbans. We are thankful to Diljit paaji for changing this. He showed people that Punjabis aren’t comedians, that they are stylish [and created awareness] about the kind of work they do.”

Diljit made history over the weekend as he became the first Punjabi artist to debut at the Coachella music festival in Indio, California. DJ Diplo was also seen attending the singer-actor’s performance on Sunday. While Diljit and Jassie have never worked together, the Punjabi singers-actors have kept in touch in the small regional industry.

Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, directed by Farhad Samji, also stars Venkatesh Daggubati, Pooja Hegde, Bhumika Chawla and Jagapathi Babu. Raghav Juyal and Siddharth Nigam also play Salman’s brothers, while Shehnaaz Gill, Virali Bhatnagar and Palak Tiwari play their love interests. Shehnaaz and Palak are making their Bollywood debuts with the film produced by Salman.