September 13 will see the release of the much-awaited Punjabi film, Ardaas Sarbat De Bhale Di, backed by Jio Studios, Humble Motion Pictures and Panorama Studios. Its lead actor Gippy Grewal was in Mumbai in August and Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to him about the film and a lot more. He’s also the film’s writer, director, producer and music director and he spoke about this aspect as well.

The earlier two parts of Ardaas Sarbat De Bhale Di – Ardaas (2016) and Ardaas Karaan (2019) – were successful. Do you feel nervous for the third part or are you sure that it’ll work just like the previous two films? I am not nervous because a lot of people have already seen the film. I also show my movies to those outside the industry. So, I have got the feedback that the film is better than expectations. The first two films passed with 100/100 marks (smiles). Such social dramas are rare in Punjabi cinema. Yet, the earlier two parts were quite loved. This gives us the confidence that even the third part would score. Moreover, the trailer has got a wonderful response.

For the first two parts, viewers would remove their shows before entering the theatre. This happened earlier with Jai Santoshi Maa (1975). Did you ever imagine something like this for Ardaas series? Never. We were just expecting to make a good film. But this series has become so big that even I get shocked. During the release of the last film, Gurpreet Ghuggi paaji went to Canada for promotions. We were doing theatre visits and the moviegoers were touching his feet. Gugghi paaji was like ‘Arre yeh kya kar rahe ho?’ especially when those older than him were also touching his feet (smiles). They told him, ‘Age is secondary. The message given in the film is so powerful’.

The Challenges of Making Social Films

There are many good deeds that we hear in the society. We have incorporated this aspect in a film script. At the same time, we ensured that the film was entertaining. I strongly feel that you can’t convey the message if there’s a lack of entertainment in your film.

There’s a lot of demand for such social films. Why is it that we don’t see our filmmakers making them? Besides Jai Santoshi Maa and Ardaas, even Chaar Sahibzaade (2014) worked big time… Even I wonder. After all, these films are working at the box office and also, you get immense respect in society. But I guess it’s difficult to write such subjects. Secondly, you are making a film dealing with religion and you need to make sure that you don’t hurt anyone’s sentiments. In the past, well-intentioned films with a good social message released but they ended up hurting a section of people. Hence, it’s a big responsibility.

We shot this film at Takhat Sachkhand Sri Hazur Sahib, Nanded. We called their team and asked them to view the film and let us know if everything was fine. After watching the film, they said, ‘Isse accha toh kuch ho hi nahin sakta tha. We didn’t expect a film of such level’. That made us very happy. We were so stressed until this screening.

A Balancing Act Between Entertainment and Social Message

Making a fun film like Carry On Jatta 3 is easier. At times, we add scenes jinka koi taal-mel nahin hai kahani ke saath (laughs). But we add it as we feel that it’ll make the audience laugh. At the most, some critics might question the relevance of the scene. Lekin relevance hai. Jisne paise kharche hai, woh khush hoke gaya hai (smiles). In films like Ardaas, we can’t use the same approach. We need to be sure that kaun kya bol raha hai. We also need to be careful with the acting.

Wearing Multiple Hats

You are the film’s actor, writer, director and music composer. It must be difficult to wear so many hats… Not really. I like it. In fact, I have also written the story, screenplay, dialogues of an upcoming film. We’ll start its music process now. The thing is that if I write a film, I have conceived in my mind ki mujhe yehi chahiye. Even in Ardaas, there are situations where a character says 3-4 lines of dialogues and then sings the next 4 lines. But when seen in totality, it doesn’t look out of place. If I sit with a music composer, I’ll have to guide him and interrupt him saying ‘Yeh galat hai, yeh aise kijiye’. I have got singers like Sukhwinder Singh, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan etc. To ensure they sing perfectly and all goes well is a task. But at least, things happen as per your wishes.

If I sign a music director, I feel ‘Inko main paisa bhi dunga. Aur bana banaya music bhi inko de dunga’. After all, I am the one composing. Nevertheless, there are times when having a music composer can be a blessing. They might also give some invaluable suggestions.

The Global Appeal of Ardaas Sarbat De Bhale Di

Punjabi films work big time in Overseas and Ardaas Sarbat De Bhale Di is also expected to do well there… With a film like this, we expect more business from Overseas than India. The second part, Ardaas Karaan, collected a huge $3 million from North America. We are hoping that our audience in foreign lands will support our movie. Even in Punjab, it was huge. And this is not the kind of film which will work for 2-3 weeks. It goes on and on. During Ardaas Karaan, I used to meet people who used to ask me what was happening. I would tell them, ‘Ardaas is playing in cinemas’. They would be shocked and ask, ‘Didn’t it release a while ago?’ I would tell them, ‘It’s still running in cinemas’!

The Role of Entourage in the Film Industry

Nowadays, a lot of producers opt for a Buy One Get One Ticket free offer to lure viewers. What’s your take on this scheme? There are times when even good films don’t work as intended as the buzz wasn’t there. Recently, three films were released. Stree 2 worked and I am told that both Khel Khel Mein and Vedaa were also well-made. Yet, these two films didn’t work for some reason. A lot of money is at stake. The producer needs to recover and this is when they opt for such offers. Viewers might feel ‘Yeh film dekhni nahin thi lekin sasti ticket hai toh dekh lete hai’. It’s like buying clothes from sale. You might not want a red coloured shirt but you’ll still buy it if it's available for a cheaper price.

Another major discussion is about entourage. Many feel it unnecessarily leads to an increase in the cost. What are your thoughts? Yes, it increases the cost. I myself have an entourage. Toh main kisi ko kya bolu (laughs)? However, some things are needed. I am a producer and even I have a team. I tell them, ‘Jaise mujhe teri zaroorat hai, waise uss actor ko bhi uss bande ki zaroorat hai’. However, trouble arises when you are not an actor of that calibre or when the producer finds it difficult to pay 10 members of his team. In such a situation, the producer would replace that actor. At times, the producer would feel that this particular actor deserves to have certain demands. But when he feels the demand is not fair, he won’t give in.

I also believe that bahut kam aise actors hai jo apne level se zyada cheezein maangte hai. Then they don’t even get sufficient work. At times, sitting in Punjab, we wonder why a particular talented actor is not seen in enough projects. It’s only when we come to Mumbai that we get to know that his nature was not right.

Gippy Grewal’s Interaction with Aamir Khan

You raised laughs at the trailer launch of Ardaas Sarbat De Bhale Di when you revealed that you used to tell others to help you to reply to Aamir Khan’s messages in English. But you didn’t tell us how Aamir Khan reacted when he found out the truth… (Laughs) He was a bit stunned. He said, ‘Tu kisi aur se likhwata tha? Pehle kyun nahin bataya mujhe?’. He is not much on social media. He launched the trailer of Carry On Jatta 3. When the film collected Rs. 100 crores, I messaged to inform him about this feat. He was abroad and immediately, he FaceTimed me. He congratulated me and asked me, ‘Yeh aapki pehli Rs. 100 crore ki film hai na?’. I replied in the affirmative. He further said, ‘I am so happy to know. I was so stressed’. He told me that the video of me singing ‘Angrezi Beat’ with him and Kapil Sharma went viral. However, he himself didn’t see it! He just found out from someone.

A Love for Mumbai

You often come to Mumbai for promotions. Do you like the city? Also, many from the North complain that the food in Mumbai is not as tasty as the one they get in the North. What’s your take? I love coming here and I am used to the city. The only issue here is the traffic jam. I am staying in J W Marriott in Juhu and it's difficult to say how much time I’ll take to reach here in Andheri. Hence, I often ask them to do interviews and events closer to my hotel location. As for the food in Mumbai, I like it a lot and have no complaints (smiles).