Diljit Dosanjh performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival on Saturday, April 22, 2023 at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California. photo credit: Amy Harris
Perhaps it is Diljit Dosanjh’s chest-thumping Punjabiyat that enthralled the audience and music lovers at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival last month. His photographs in kurtas, brimming with linguistic pride and embellished with the traditional fashion vocabulary of the region’s hinterland, chandra (Or copperpunjabi style Lungi) And Trumpet Pug (pleated-fan turban) went viral at the prestigious annual music festival held in the Colorado Desert of California.
Chandigarh is her first stop in India after the performance, which drew praise (for becoming the first Indian to perform at one of the world’s biggest music festivals) and a row over the Indian flag. Street-wise, yet reticent and reserved, Diljit prefers to keep himself away from controversies. “I like to stay away from negativity.” He says.
The singer-actor’s usual demeanor is restrained: he doesn’t let success get to his head, nor does he get bogged down by trolls. That is his X-factor.
Diljit ploughing, now promoting his film Pair Which will be released on 5 May.
Nimrat Khaira and Diljit Dosanjh in Chandigarh | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
He is also accompanied by Punjabi singer-actor Nimrat Khaira in The LaLiT. The pair will be playing the role of rural musicians arenas (small stages where singers performed for rural audiences in Punjab, which were a popular source of entertainment until the late 90s) Pair, “I signed the film in 2018 because its story, I felt, is interesting,” he says in Punjabi, dressed in light pink, wide-leg pants, a white shirt and a waistcoat that exudes quiet luxury.
Diljit was introduced to singing at the age of seven by his sister’s tuition teacher, who was fond of writing poetry and used to ask Diljit to recite his poems. “My sister was studious and I had to accompany her to tuitions. Her teacher realized that I was not interested in studies and made a proposal: a day off for each poem recited. I took it. Soon, all my village school teachers started addressing me as a artist (artist), so I started to believe I was the one.
Now 39 years old Diljit is completing 21 years in the entertainment industry. With nearly 15 albums under his belt, he collaborated with English singer-songwriter Anne-Marie and Canadian rapper Tory Lanez last year. He has seen the technological evolution of the Punjabi music industry from his debut album Heart, on cassette and CD, all released on digital music apps for songs from his new film. “In 2002, cassettes started being phased out and CDs took off. In those days, music companies used to select musicians they felt sang well and artistes were often bound by five-year contracts,” he says.
Diljit points to the maths behind music production and distribution to explain how the internet democratised it. “For the longest time, Punjabi singers did not claim royalty; Such were our contracts. Only HMV gave royalty to Punjabi singers; Charanjit Ahuja, a music composer associated with HMV, told me that he got the maximum royalty from Amar Singh Chamkila’s songs. I was shocked to hear this! I was under the impression that singers earn money only through performance. Now, times have changed. The youth are releasing their songs, distributing them and keeping their rights with them. The internet has given everyone an equal opportunity to showcase their music on platforms like Spotify and Apple,” he says.
Since 2011, Diljit has acted in around 29 films including the Bollywood blockbuster Udta Punjab, However, he is recognized first as a singer and then as an actor. Diljit says the only difference between the Punjabi film industry and Bollywood is language.
After Jaspal Bhatti, he is the only turbaned Sikh to have acted in Bollywood. He says he is mindful of how Sikhs are represented in Bollywood, keen to break the comic image of the community.
He faced a similar problem in Punjabi films when he started out , Diljit’s first film lion of punjab It flopped at the box office. “The producer said that the film did not do well because I wore a turban and hence the youth did not come to watch it. I agreed. Fair enough! Incidentally, I had already shot for another film who stole my heart Before the release of my first film. If I had not shot for that film, I would not have continued acting because I really believed in the producer. But who stole my heart Broke all the records. it was a success. So, I continued acting,” he shared.
Diljit will soon be seen playing the role of iconic Dalit singer Chamkila from Punjab, who was shot during a performance in Mehsampur in 1988, in Imtiaz Ali’s biopic. It’s an irony though, given that many of Diljit’s songs have come under fire for promoting violence (such as pills And jaat fire karda) and sexism (eg Luck 28 Kudi Da), “I compose a song first, then, I start composing lyrics to the tune. Lyrics are important, but composition is key,” he says.
Regarding violence, Diljit feels films and music should be judged on the same standards. “People who take music seriously have their reasons. But like films, songs also have a subject. If issues like violence are being addressed specifically with respect to the songs, then the films should be viewed through the same prism. But, this does not happen. We see action in Hindi and English movies as well.
Diljit’s hustle has gained fame and popularity which puts him on the global map like no other Punjabi musician. He wrote history at Coachella, but deep down this Punjabi boy’s heart aches for a sense of home. “I was born in Punjab and I carry the scent of the soil with me wherever I go. I have not considered a place as home. I do not stay at any place for more than three days. To be honest, I don’t have a home. My home is wherever work takes me. I no longer attach myself to people or places; It’s inbuilt,” he says as he packs up for another set of interviews and poses for the cameras, in a place where he really belongs: the stage.