Home-grown talent

Sheetal

Working from your hometown is an opportunity very few people get and there is no bigger a present if companies from outside try to promote local talents in any field. Chandigarh lad Jashn Kohli, who has been part of various reality shows on television, is glad to be back in the city to shoot for Punjabi show Kamli Ishq Di, which will premiere on Zee Punjabi, a new channel to be launched soon in Chandigarh. Working in Mumbai for last four years, Jashn was able to get roles in movies like Airlift, Battalion 609, Veerey Ki Wedding, Jalebi and The Zoya Factor. Talking about life in the city, Jashn says, “First of all, more than me, my mother is happy to see me working from home. I love the vibe of Sector 17 and although people now prefer going to Elante mall but I am old school. I would still prefer to roam in open air and would love to eat sweet potato chaat that we used to eat during childhood.”

Becoming a fauji

About his character, Jashn says, “I am playing a soldier named Veer and for this role I had to learn Amritsari dialect; no matter how fluent you are in Punjabi, it takes time to adjust to a new way of speaking the same language. I feel that a story like this can only be made in Punjab and that too by Punjabis. I only hope that I will be able to inspire youngsters to take pride in serving the nation and stay away from drugs.”

Shooting in a village near Chamkaur Sahib, Jashn admits that being born in a city, he was always away from the tough yet adventurous lives villagers lead. Village life suits Jashn as he also enjoys sarson da saag made on chulha offered by local people. He adds, “I am enjoying winter after so long. I realised how badly I need to do winter shopping. I gave all my winter clothes to friends since you don’t need them in Mumbai.” He has been part of Netflix web series 21 Sarfarosh Saragrahi 1897 and has done numerous commercials. Jashn has already shot for movie Bhangra Paale, releasing on January 3, web series Taj Mahal 1989 on Voot and Inside Edge Season 3.

Wearing many hats

Miss Chandigarh 2012, Sara Gurpal is a woman of many talents. From modelling to singing to being an actor, she is giving her competitors a run for their money. Born in Haryana, after her modelling debut, Sara featured in various hit songs including Jean, Jaguar, 32-Bore and Jaan. This led to her singing career, which she says is her first love. She adds, “I love to act as well but if ever given a choice to opt one career, it would definitely be singing. I started learning music when I was 16. During pageant days, in talent rounds, I use to rely on my vocals.” She has sung songs like Ishq Bimari, Jaan Kadh Ke, Ki Mai Kalli Aa and Lagdi Att. And now, after trying her hand in Punjabi movies like Manje Bistre and Dangar Doctor Jelly, she is all set to play Heer in the show Heer Ranjha on Zee Punjabi. Set in Punjab, Sara says, “I will play a girl in a modern-day love story, which I feel is very relevant for the young audience.”

Confessing her admiration for Surinder Kaur’s voice and songs, Sara says, “I would love to sing one of her songs in my voice. I hope this dream of mine will become a reality soon. Apart from her, I would love to collaborate with my favourite Punjabi singer Amarinder Gill.”

In the industry, Sara says her vibe matches with Jasmine Sandlas, Shipra Goyal, Kaur B and Himanshi Khurana. While she was offered to be the wild card entry in Big Boss, she refused to be part of it. Her reason, “I think I would never want to be known to my fans for controversies. So, I intentionally stayed out of the show which already had two women singers.” Moreover, Sara was shooting for movie Sehar with Roshan Prince at that time.

Experimenting at every step, Sara loves to hear Spanish songs and recently uploaded audio version of her Haryanvi song, Desi Katta on YouTube. She is also working on Telugu music and is awaiting the release of three of her songs (including Desi Katta’s video) and two web series Mr N Mrs Kohli on MX Players and Cruisified, India’s first cruise reality show, on Netflix.