It was almost a year ago that rumours about Pakistani actor Hania Aamir making her Bollywood debut surfaced on the internet, soon after she joined Punjabi singer and actor Diljit Dosanjh on stage during his concert. Then there was buzz suggesting that she is a part of his upcoming film Sardaar Ji 3. However, after Operation Sindoor, reports claimed that Hania was dropped from the project after the Indian film industry imposed a ban on Pakistani artists. When the film’s trailer released this week, Hania was a prominent part of it. Thus began the trolling, with many demanding Diljit’s removal from his next Indian film Border 2. Well, Diljit has now finally broken his silence on the controversy, only to be trolled more.
In a chat with BBC Asian Network, Diljit Dosanjh shared that Sardaar Ji 3 was shot months before tensions rose between India and Pakistan. He stated, “Jab yeh film bani thi tab toh situation sab theek tha. Matlab jab yeh humne shoot kiya, February mein... February mein shoot kiya, tab situation theek thi, saara kuchh sahi chal raha tha. Uske baad, dekho bohot saari cheezein, badi cheezein humaare haath mein nahi hai. Toh yeh producers ne decide kiya ki yeh film obviously ab India toh nahi lagegi, toh isko overseas release karte hain. Toh obviously inka bohot paisa laga hua hai, aur jab yeh film ban rahi thi tab aisa kuchh tha nahi. Toh theek hai fir woh already loss, unn logo ke dimaag mein hai ki loss toh hoga hi 100%, kyunki ek territory aap usme minus kar rahe ho. Toh, maine bhi jab film sign ki thi tab toh sab theek tha, toh abhi ab situations humaare haath mein hai nahi. Toh bahar release karna chahte hain, toh main unke saath hun.”
Well, netizens are not having it. Trolling Diljit under a Reddit thread featuring a clip from his interview, one social media user opined, “Can we actually cancel his citizenship? Are there any provisions for that? I would like him to not enter this country again please 🙏🏼,” whereas another wrote, “He is rich enough to afford some loss by not releasing the film but he chose not to.” A comment read, “He is a snake and we should stop asking a snake why he bit us. Rather avoid this snake and ignore his movies,” whereas a netizen agreed and wrote, “Snakes' nature is to slither…” Another angry internet user claimed, “Jo apne desh ka nhi hua woh kisi ka nhi hota, ese gadaar hamesha rahe hai India mein.”
{{/usCountry}}Well, netizens are not having it. Trolling Diljit under a Reddit thread featuring a clip from his interview, one social media user opined, “Can we actually cancel his citizenship? Are there any provisions for that? I would like him to not enter this country again please 🙏🏼,” whereas another wrote, “He is rich enough to afford some loss by not releasing the film but he chose not to.” A comment read, “He is a snake and we should stop asking a snake why he bit us. Rather avoid this snake and ignore his movies,” whereas a netizen agreed and wrote, “Snakes' nature is to slither…” Another angry internet user claimed, “Jo apne desh ka nhi hua woh kisi ka nhi hota, ese gadaar hamesha rahe hai India mein.”
{{/usCountry}}However, there were a few fans who understood Diljit’s point. One such netizen stated, “Sorry what’s the issue here ? They should have shelved the film because of the war? The producers would have suffered huge loses,” whereas another comment read, “But it's true. The film has been made, money has been lost. Why should producers lose the amount they paid? If the shooting would have started after attack then maybe they could have stopped, but this is too late. Are you going to pay the producers the amount they spent? If yes, producers will be glad to stop the release. Since you are not losing money it's easy for you to advice.”
Also starring Neeru Bajwa, Sardaar Ji 3 is all set to release overseas, not in India, on June 27.