Diljit humbled by response to Soorma

Actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh's performance as hockey champ Sandeep Singh is winning exceptional laurels as the man himself remains humble, down-to-earth and rooted. "I knew Soorma was a role of a lifetime. I am ashamed to say that when Shaad Sir (director Shaad Ali) came to me with the project I did not know anything about Sandeep paaji. It's a shame that we do not give the same respect and position to hockey as we do to other games in the country," says Diljit, regretfully as he embarks on a new phase in his acting career.

The preparations to play the part took Diljit right into the field. "A role like Soorma happens once in a lifetime. I learnt to play hockey from a scratch. And it had to be hockey on a competent level. I was essaying the role of Sandeep Singh. I couldn't afford to look like an amateur. I learnt the game from Sandeep paaji and and his elder brother (Bikram Singh). By the time I was ready to face the camera I was confident of my game," adds Diljit.

Diljit hopes that Soorma, which released on July 13, will create awareness about the game of hockey. "When I go to Haryana and my home state Punjab, I see children everywhere playing hockey. But not outside these two states. Why? Why is there no glamour, prestige and power attached to the game of hockey in the rest of the country? "If Soorma can create even some awareness of what a difficult and involving a game hockey is, I would think my efforts have paid off," he opines.

Up next

Diljit's next film is Arjun Patiala, a comedy where he shares screen space with Kriti Sanon. "I am learning from every film that I do. It's an ongoing process. I am looking at a couple of other films. But I am not anxious to do films. My first love remains music and singing. I've sung one of the songs Ishq di baajiyan in Soorma." — IANS