'When I Met Anushkaji, I Kept Staring At Her': Diljit Dosanjh

    When Diljit Dosanjh decided to choose Udta Punjab as his Bollywood debut, he never imagined that B-town would coming looking for him again.

    The actor has recently been signed on by Anushka Sharma for her second production after NH10, the quaintly titled Phillauri, "I never expected to become an actor, let alone be a part of a Bollywood film. I was completely awed when I met Anushkaji that I simply kept staring at her. She is an ace producer and actress and I made it pretty evident that I'm a huge fan," Diljit confesses modestly in an interview with Mumbai Mirror.

    "I was asked if I wanted to read or listen to the script. I was so happy when they read out the entire story to me instead of just my part. I never imagined Bollywood folks could be so lovely, they completely blew me away. The full-on drama implicit in the plot shook me to the core," the 32-year-old actor recalls after meeting with Anushka's co-producer brother, Karnesh, and writer-director, Anshai Lal, last December.

    In Abhishek Chaubey's Udta Punjab, Diljit will be seen playing a tough cop, alongside Kareena Kapoor. "Kareena ma'am never said, 'Ab bas ho gaya, aur shoot nahi karna' or threw any nakhras on the sets. I was amazed by her professionalism, it made me want to work harder. I behaved like a starstruck fan with her too, recalling the fun I had watching Jab We Met," he gushes. 

    He says, "It's nice to see that Bollywood is finally accepting a turbaned man. The reason why I was so scared to enter Hindi films earlier was because I had been warned that the audience doesn't think a sardar is fashionable, but after Ranbir Kapoor, Ajay Devgn, Akshay Kumar played sardars, looks like I definitely have a shot." 

    Phillauri also stars Anushka and Life of Pi actor Suraj Sharma. Earlier this month, the actress-filmmaker had revealed, "It's a unique premise. It took almost 100 years, a crazy Punjabi wedding and rank strangers to complete this love story, and that's the crux of the film."

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