Soumya Vajpayee Tiwari (MID-DAY; October 7, 2016)

For the second time in four months, actor-musician Diljit Dosanjh’s work has fallen prey to piracy. His debut Bollywood film, Udta Punjab, co-starring Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Kareena Kapoor Khan, was leaked online two days ahead of its scheduled release. Recently, his latest single, Do You Know, made its way to the e-space days before the official launch.

When Diljit found out about the piracy, he clicked on the download links and asked website owners to pull the music video down. “I was disappointed to see the pirated version available on several websites. I wrote to owners of some websites, and requested them to replace the pirated version with the official link. They responded almost immediately,” says the Punjabi superstar.

Given the prompt response on their part, Diljit did not approach the Cyber Crime Cell. But, he is still disturbed by the episode. “It’s tough for an artiste to see his/her hard work being sold by unethical means,” he adds.

Punjabi singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh on steering clear of Hindi film music
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; September 26, 2016)

His single Do You Know took social media by storm over the weekend, and actor-song Diljit Dosanjh couldn't be happier. He says, "I have done a romantic song after years. Usually, Punjabi artistes focus on pleasing the crowd, and our brethren have a thing for 'burrah' and typical wedding songs. After Udta Punjab's Ikk Kudi fared well, I realised that my love songs still have the same magic."

Diljit wants to retain the innocence in his voice, and doesn't plan to foray into Bollywood's music scene. He says B'wood is not his ball game, and he doesn't want his passion for singing to be reduced to a struggle for bread and butter.

"I am a Punjabi folk lover. I don't make music for a national audience. My target audience is the typical Punjabi peeps. I am not a music producer, and I'm clear I cannot continuously keep churning out music for Hindi movies. I cannot become a struggler here when I already have a flourishing career back home. I cannot store my music in a bank like composers here do. When I see Punjabi musicians in Bollywood, I see them struggle even after delivering a string of hits. They remain dependant, which takes the soul out of their music. Though I am a singer first, I always knew acting was my route into Bollywood," he says.