Dark horse rising

Jasmine Singh

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It was a decision Jaggi Singh took when his mail box and whatsapp was over-flowing with messages from directors, co-stars and producers. It was then he realized that there was more to this passion, there was so much more than he could do about it, and there was more to acting, definitely.

After making his villainous presence felt in the Punjabi film Faraar, Punjabi actor Jaggi who moved from Jagraon, Punjab to the US when he was a kid, is now making his big leap in the Hollywood arena.

“I am currently working on a Hollywood short film called Personalities which is being directed by Tony Doupe of Tripod Productions,” shares Jaggi.

As to how the whole Hollywood saga began, Jaggi, who has set a style statement with his fully-grown beard and mustache, adds, “Doupe called me post Faraar to audition for his film. He told me he loved watching my role in it and was looking for a similar character for his short film. In a way, Faraar opened new doors for me. Doupe is an established short film director who has worked with Angelina Jolie in the past.”

Currently shooting in New York for the film, Jaggi, who is also nominated for the Best Villain Award 2016, can already see the glaring differences between the way films are shot in Hollywood and everywhere else. He also sees one similarity, “and it is the passion with which each unit makes a film, right from the director, the cast and the crew, the technicians. Filmmaking is all about putting what you strongly feel about on screen. However, Hollywood definitely has some great technicians, their camera work is excellent and nothing can beat their professionalism. For them 10 am is 10 am,” he laughs, reminding us of one of his Faraar laughs!

Coming back to his role and stint at Hollywood, Jaggi describes his character at length. “Personalities is based on four characters and it has four stories. It is focused on human personalities. It explores various facets of life, human behaviour, the decisions we take, our needs, how we shape our lives, etc. My character showcases how someone has everything in life yet he is not satisfied. People suffering from a low phase, depression or anger due to quality of life will relate to it,” says Jaggi.

The film is expected to release this November and will do the film festival circuit, including Sundance Film Festival in January.

“They call me the Dark Horse of Punjabi Cinema here and I take the compliment nicely,” he lets out a bout of another throaty laughter.

Needless to say, acting is his passion, one that he has been pursing and learning since high school. Jaggi completed his studies from Washington University and has also taken acting classes from David Hogan and Angela Dimarco of the New York Film Academy. He swears by the irresistible charm international cinema holds, but Punjab is where his heart is too.

Meanwhile, he has been approached for Punjabi films and will be working on something later this year. “I have always wanted to give Punjabi cinema a variety of characters. I am impressed with the new subjects that are being taken up. Now, filmmakers here have started to focus on quality of work. They have started to experiment with new subjects and characters, and are open to ideas," he adds before it's a bye for now!