Imtiaz Ali defends Diljit Dosanjh amid row over casting Hania Aamir in Sardaar Ji 3; calls him ‘son of the soil’

In a recent interview, Imtiaz Ali spoke in defence of Diljit Dosanjh after the row surrounding casting of Hania Aamir in Sardaar Ji 3.

There has been much chatter about Diljit Dosanjh since his Punjabi film Sardaar Ji 3 featured Pakistani actor Hania Aamir. Imtiaz Ali, who had previously worked with Diljit in the Netflix film Amar Singh Chamkila, backed the singer-actor in an interview with NDTV amid the controversy. (Also Read: Javed Akhtar slams de facto ban on ‘bechara’ Diljit Dosanjh's Sardaar Ji 3: 'Paisa Indian ka doobega, Pakistani ka nahi')

Imtiaz Ali defended Diljit Dosanjh against recent criticism of him surrounding Sardaar Ji 3.

Imtiaz Ali backs Diljit Dosanjh

When asked about how Sardaar Ji 3 was released only abroad in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack and how Diljit’s love for the country was called into question, Imtiaz said, “I can't say much on the row, but since I know Diljit, I can say that uss mein deshbhakti ka jazbaa poora bhara hua hai (He is a patriot at heart). He is a son of the soil. You can see at all his concerts, he shows up with the Indian flag. He is not a guy who fakes things. Fakeness ke saath woh kuch nahi karta hai (He doesn't fake things). No one asked him to do it. At the end of all his concerts, he says, Main hoon Punjab, with the Indian flag.”

Imtiaz also defended Diljit, stating that casting someone isn’t the actor’s decision. “I don't know how it went, but I know that uske andar desh prem bahut zyada hai (He loves his country too much). Jo log dekh paayenge unke andar ke sach ko, unko ye samajh mein aa jaayega (People who can see the truth, will understand him),” he added.

The Sardaar Ji 3 casting row

Sardaar Ji 3 was released in theatres on 27 June but was not released in India. On 22 June, when the trailer for the film was dropped and it featured Hania, Diljit received flak, given the government’s diktat to ban Pakistani artists and creators in India after the Pahalgam attack.

The Federation of Western India Cine Employees even sent a letter to Imtiaz, ‘strongly appealing’ to him to reconsider casting Diljit in his upcoming film. They also appealed to the government of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to blacklist the makers of Sardaar Ji 3 and Diljit from the film industry, asking for their passports and Indian citizenship to be revoked.