If you can sing, you can definitely fight!

If the N-word is tearing Bollywood apart, it’s the S-word which is casting its shadow on Pollywood. Unless one is a singer with a couple of hits, it’s difficult to enter the industry, feel most newcomers

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Manpriya Singh

The N-word once again has the B-town both divided and united. More divided than united. Not that it was ever out of news, with earlier in the year Siddhant Chaturvedi, an outsider exchanging notes on his definition of struggle with that of Ananya Pandey’s. “Where our dreams end, that’s where their struggles begin,” he said to a hooting audience and supportive memes thereafter.

On paper, given the networking barometers of Bollywood, shouldn’t a debut in Punjabi film industry be a cakewalk?

Singing the right tune

“Who thinks like that? Maybe it’s easy for singers with several hits to their credit, but not for others. I haven’t gone back to my native state Kashmir in the past seven months just so I don’t lose out on any opportunities,” says Miss PTC Punjabi 2019 winner Rehmat Rattan. In fact, her real struggle began after winning the title. “My profile did the rounds of so many producers’ offices, I uploaded my acting link on Youtube and this even before I was called for auditions.”

Then the uncertain, unpredictable showbiz so much so that till the time a film has hit theatres, there can be many proverbial slip between the cup and the lip. “In fact, I was to begin a Bollywood project inspired by the real life story of fitness trainer Guru Mann and then there are a couple of Punjabi films in the pipeline but nothing can be said till the films are released.”

Bollywood import over home-grown talent

Bollywood is difficult to break into and close-knit circles are intimidating. But then Pollywood too comes with its own rough turf. One of the leading names in Punjabi entertainment industry mentioned the attitude of Pollywood industry, “It’s like ghar di murgi dal barabar, that’s how this industry treats you. I was first shown more trust by South Indian filmmakers and that’s when Punjabi directors and producers thought of casting me as more than the heroine’s best friend.”

A statement corroborated also by the fact that many teeny-bit roles often go to, not home-grown talent, but Bollywood imports that retreat back to Mumbai after a film or two. Zarine Khan, Neha Sharma… the list is long and ever growing.

As for the male actors, we don’t know anyone who was ever allowed in, given the handful of Punjabi singers can croon, romance and beat up goons all on their own. Even though Jimmy Sheirgill, Rahul Dev, Mukesh Rishi remain the noteworthy exceptions to have successfully transitioned back and forth.

Home via B-town

Hailing from Gurdaspur, Sharan Kaur didn’t know what she was in for when the first shoot fetching Rs 7000 got her hooked to limelight. “Even I thought to work in Pollywood would be easy, but it’s not. I shifted to Mumbai, did an acting course, learnt Hindi diction, did TV commercials, and had two serials on Colors to my credit before I could debut in Pollywood with Munda Faridkotia,” shares the actress, who will next be seen in Shareek 2.

“It’s not impossible but it’s not easy either. Only if you are talented, serious about your work and passionate, then can you think of making a career in any regional industry.”

To get a chance is one thing, to be able to make the most of it, quite another. “Yes, not that star kids and star siblings don’t exist in Punjabi cinema, it’s just that most of the star kids haven’t done well at the box office. But in Pollywood the real threat comes from new singers cropping up every day, whose popularity matters and not their acting abilities,” shares a male actor who knows the pain of playing a second fiddle to the ‘singer hero’.

No scout for newbies

The lack of casting agents is another negative weighing against the newcomers. When we last spoke to perhaps the only casting director in Pollywood, Jyotika Badyal, she rued about casting not getting its due in the industry. Arsh Hundal, who debuted with Blackia as the negative protagonist against Dev Kharoud, says the job of casting is actually looked after by assistant directors in Punjab. Personally his real struggle started early on. “On my fourth attempt, I finally made it as the first runner-up in the Mr Punjab contest. That’s when my journey started.” Who would know this better than Ananya Pandey that struggle is a subjective concept. Adds Arsh, “But it’s for sure that struggle is what lends you depth as an artiste. And it lies ahead no matter which industry.”

manpriya@tribunemail.com