Amar Singh Chamkila Actor Jashn Kohli Recalls Being ‘Lost’ On Day 1 Of Shoot: Imtiaz Ali Never…

Amar Singh Chamkila received an overwhelming response upon release on April 12. The film is headlined by Diljit Dosanjh and Parineeti Chopra and is directed by Imtiaz Ali. The movie is based on the lives of Punjabi artist Amar Singh Chamkila and his wife Amarjot Kaur, whose songs became massive hits in the 1980s. Jashn Kohli plays the significant role of Amarjot Kaur’s brother in the musical drama. Days after the release, the actor shared how it was a dream of his to work with Imtiaz Ali. 

Jashn Kohli on Imtiaz Ali causing deliberate confusion on film shoot 

Jashn Kohli, who plays the role of Papu, Amarjot’s (Parineeti Chopra) brother in the recently released streaming film Amar Singh Chamkila, shared that he was lost during his first shot on the set. The confusion was purposely created by the film’s director Imtiaz Ali as he didn’t give Jash the script to bring out the essence of confusion for the character. 

Sharing his experience of working with Imtiaz Ali, the actor said: “Imtiaz sir is a magician. It was my dream to work with him, and I am glad Waheguru ji made it a reality. He is so well-researched that I really didn’t have to prepare much for the role. In fact, Imtiaz sir didn’t give me the script, and I was so confused during my first shot on set, and I was lost as I had no preparation.”

He added, “After the shot, Imtiaz sir came to me and said, ‘This confusion I wanted for Pappu’. I was like, ‘Ye kya banda hai’ (what an amazing director he is), so deep.” Praising the director further, the actor told IANS, “On set, Imtiaz sir never sees the monitor, he trusts his eyes, which is so unique. One more thing I observed is that Imtiaz sir chose very humble actors. It's so divine to be on his set.”

Diljit Dosanjh recalls Imtiaz Ali sending him emails to explain how Chamkila would react in a situation 

Diljit Dosanjh got a lot of help from director Imtiaz Ali to step into the shoes of musician Amar Singh Chamkila, who was called 'Elvis Presley Of Punjab', for the film Chamkila. The actor-singer said that the filmmaker would send him emails about how the late singer must be thinking in situations. To step into the world of Chamkila, Diljit just followed Ali’s lead. “I followed Imtiaz Ali. When he is making a biopic, he is very sure of what is being made. I followed his guidelines. I did whatever he wanted me to do,” Diljit told IANS.

The 40-year-old star then went on to share that Ali would send him emails about how his character would think in a particular situation. “I feel he thinks about this every day, whatever would cross his mind, he would send me an email on it because I have a very raw way. So, maybe he took this way for me or he must be thinking about the character.” It was not for the story or the dialogues, he stressed. “What he was sending across was different from the story and the dialogues. It was a characterisation about what Chamkila is thinking or would be running in his mind.” He has kept the mails safe and even shared that he has exclusive pictures of the late singer. “I still have those mails with me and I have some pictures of Chamkila sent by him that are not out anywhere. It helped me a lot,” he added. The film is currently streaming on Netflix. 
 

(With inputs from IANS)