Diljit Dosanjh (born 6 January 1984) is an Indian actor, singer, television

presenter and social media celebrity[1] who works in Punjabi and Hindi cinema.[2]
He is recognised as one of the leading artists in the Punjabi music industry.[3] He
also acts in Punjabi movies, with many of them being notable hits, including Jatt &
Juliet, Jatt & Juliet 2, Punjab 1984, Sardaar Ji, Ambarsariya, Sardaar Ji 2, Super
Singh, Soorma and Sajjan Singh Rangroot � which are among the most successful
Punjabi movies in history.[4] His first recorded mainstream performance was his
solo track and music video Ishq Da Uda Ada from his 2004 album produced by Finetone
Cassettes.[5] He made his Bollywood debut with Udta Punjab in 2016 for which he
earned the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. He mostly works with White Hill
Productions. He is also a judge in Rising Star.

Early life
Diljit Dosanjh was born on 6 January 1984[6] to a Sikh [7] family in the village of
Dosanjh Kalan in Phillaur tehsil, Jalandhar district, Punjab, India. His father,
Balbir Singh, is a former employee of Punjab Roadways, and his mother, Sukhwinder
Kaur, is a homemaker. He has two siblings, one elder sister and one younger
brother.[8] He spent his early childhood in Dosanjh Kalan and then moved to
Ludhiana, Punjab from where he completed his formal education, including a high
school diploma from Shri Guru Harkrishan Public School. While still in school, he
began his singing career by performing Kirtan (Sikh religious music) at local
gurdwaras.

2003�2004:Ishq Da Uda Ada and Dil

Dosanjh released his first album Ishq Da Uda Ada in 2004 with Finetone Cassettes, a
division of T-Series. Rajinder Singh of Finetone, who helped Dosanjh make a debut
in the Punjabi music industry, suggested to him to spell his first name as Diljit
instead of Daljit.[9] The music was composed by Bablu Mahindra and the lyrics were
written by Balvir Boparai. Dosanjh gave vocals to all the eight tracks and the
producers made a music video for the title track of the album. In 2004, his second
album Dil was released, which was again with Finetone Cassettes.

2004�2010: More mix tapes and singles

Dosanjh's third album Smile, with tracks Nachh Diyan Alran Kuwariyan and Paggan
Pochviyan Wale, soared Dosanjh's popularity. The album was released by Finetone
Cassettes in 2005. His next album Ishq Ho Gaya was released in 2006 by Finetone
Cassettes. His next album, titled Chocolate, came out in 2008. In 2009, Dosanjh
released four different singles � Bhagat Singh, No Tension, Power of Duets and
Dance with Me. Next year, Dosanjh released his sixth album called The Next Level
with nine tracks. Dosanjh gave his next song in 2010 for Mel Karade Rabba: Original
Soundtrack. The track was lip-synced by the actor Jimmy Shergill and was included
in the feature film of the same name during opening credits.[10]

2011�2012: Entry into Punjabi movies and Lak 28 Kudi Da

2011 saw Dosanjh's entry into mainstream Punjabi movies. His debut film in the lead
role The Lion of Punjab, was released in February 2011. Though the film flopped at
the box office, his track "Lak 28 Kudi Da", from the movie's soundtrack was a major
success. The track, featuring Yo Yo Honey Singh, reached number 1 on The Official
Asian Download Chart in USA published by the BBC. In July 2011, his second Punjabi
movie Jihne Mera Dil Luteya was released. The film, also featuring Gippy Grewal and
Neeru Bajwa, did good business. Dosanjh gave vocals to six of the twelve tracks in
the film's soundtrack. In November the same year, Diljit declared that he won't
release his controversial album Urban Pendu, that included the single 15 Saal. That
single, featuring Yo Yo Honey Singh, talked about promiscuous behaviour of underage
girls and their indulgence in alcohol, drugs and tattoos.[11] He wrote on his
Facebook page: "It was not my intention to hurt anyone's sentiments. I apologize to
my fans who were waiting for this song."[12] Dosanjh wore a T-shirt with the words
"Urban Pendu" printed on it in the music video of his 2013 hit single Proper Patola
as a remembrance of that track and album. Dosanjh also released three different
singles in 2011 � Catty Eyes, Dharti and Chustiyan.

2012�present: Breakthrough and Bollywood career

Dosanjh continued his collaboration with Honey Singh in 2012 and released a single
titled "Goliyan" that formed a part of the album International Villager. He next
sang for the soundtrack of the Bollywood film Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya, released in
January 2012, in a single called "Pee Pa Pee Pa" that also featured Priya Panchal.
He also acted in that music video in the movie. His subsequent single "Bodyguard",
glorified the fall of Libyan revolutionary and politician, Muammar Gaddafi, where
Dosanjh sang about his lifestyle, capture and death. His subsequent single "Miss
Lonely", was composed by JSL Singh. In March 2012, he released his first religious
album titled Sikh. The album featured eight singles and talked about the principles
and philosophy of Sikh religion. Dosanjh played a lead role in June 2012 movie Jatt
& Juliet, which became one of the biggest hits in the Punjabi film industry. The
award-winning film, directed by Anurag Singh, also featured actress Neeru Bajwa and
was shot in Punjab & Mumbai in India and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.[13]
Dosanjh Diljit won the PTC Punjabi Film Award for Best Actor for the movie. He gave
vocals to five of the seven songs in the soundtrack of the movie. The same year in
November, he released his eighth album, called Back 2 Basics, with nine tracks and
the music composed by Tru-Skool. The duo worked together to produce the incredibly
popular "Kharku" which won the "Best Bhangra Song of the Year" award at both the
Brit Asia TV Music Awards, and the PTC Punjabi Music Awards.[14] In January 2013,
Dosanjh's third Punjabi film Saadi Love Story hit the big screens. The film, that
also starred Amrinder Gill and Surveen Chawla, flopped at the box office. Dosanjh
sang for two songs in the movie's soundtrack, which was composed by Jaidev Kumar.
Dosanjh made a guest appearance in the April 2013 Bollywood movie Bikkar Bai
Sentimental with his track "Main Fan Bhagat Singh Da". Inspired by the success of
Jatt & Juliet, the producers of the movie released a sequel to the film, titled
Jatt & Juliet 2, in June 2013. Dosanjh played the role of a cop in the movie. The
film had nine songs in the soundtrack, of which four were sung by Dosanjh. He gave
vocals for the track "Main Taan Aidaan Hi Nachna" from the soundtrack of the
Bollywood movie Yamla Pagla Deewana 2, which was released in June 2013. In August
2013, Dosanjh's music video "Proper Patola" was released on Vevo, making it the
first Punjabi song to be featured on Vevo.[15] The single, composed by Badshah,
received over one million hits on YouTube just within a fortnight of its release.
Dosanjh said: "I extend my thanks to all who have liked watching the song. I'm glad
to live up to the expectations of all, and with their faith in me."[16] Diljit shot
for his next Punjabi movie Disco Singh, which was released on 11 April 2014. The
movie, directed and written by Anurag Singh, also features Surveen Chawla and is
shot in Delhi NCR.[17] In 2014, he worked for the movie Punjab 1984, which is set
in the backdrop of 1984�86 Punjab insurgency. The film was released on 27 June 2014
and is directed by Anurag Singh. The movie won National Film Award for Best Feature
Film in Punjabi.[18] Diljit is only the first south Asian artist who visited the US
headquarters of Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram on the same day.
[19][20] In 2015, he sang in a duet song in Coke Studio @ MTV Season 4, Ki Banu
Duniya Da, with the singer Gurdas Maan[21] which was released on 15 August 2015 and
was broadcast on 16 August 2015 on MTV India.[22] Diljit's second film from 2015
Mukhtiar Chadha was appreciated for his unique role in it.[23][24] In 2015, the
Most Sensational Celebrities (MSC) study among most famous people in Pollywood, the
riskiest personalities on the web, Diljit Dosanjh was found number one from number
five in 2014 thus leaving behind Mika Singh, Gippy Grewal and Harbhajan Mann.[25]
With a worldwide collection of ?996.7 million, the film proved to be a commercial
success.[26]

Dosanjh next starred in the social drama Udta Punjab (2016), his first Hindi film.
Directed by Abhishek Chaubey, the film deals with the subject of substance abuse in
the Indian province of Punjab.[27][28] Co-starring alongside Kareena Kapoor, Shahid
Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, Udta Punjab generated controversy when the Central Board of
Film Certification deemed that the film represented Punjab in a negative light and
demanded extensive censorship before its theatrical release.[29] The Bombay High
Court later cleared the film for exhibition with one scene cut.[30] Dosanjh also
sang the song "Ik Kudi" for the film.[31] In a highly positive review, The Hindu
said that Dosanjh was "successful" in delivering a "highly hitting performance".
[32]

As of September 2016, Dosanjh has completed work on his second Bollywood production
Phillauri, alongside Anushka Sharma and Suraj Sharma.[33] The film was released on
23 March 2017. It grossed over ?5 million in its box-office.[34] He's also working
on a film based on world war 1 which will be releasing in early 2018.The yet
untitled film will be based on World War I and he will play a soldier in it.[35] He
is all set to be the first turbaned Sikh to be honored with a wax statue at Madame
Tussauds.[36]

Artistry
Musical style and influences
Continually experimenting with new musical ideas and images, Dosanjh's musical and
performance style is the subject of analysis and scrutiny from critics.[37] Dosanjh
grew up learning music from Gobinder Singh Alampuri and Kartar Singh,[9] and his
initial work reflected their style.[38] His later collaboration with Honey Singh
lent a different dimension to his music. The composers Jaidev Kumar, Sukhpal Sukh,
Sachin Ahuja, Pavneet Birgi, Jassi Bros Bhinda Aujla, and Tru Skool have all
influenced him. His goal is to make a Punjabi song that becomes worldwide hit like
Korean single Gangnam Style.[39][40]

Videos, movies and stage

His live performances are described as highly entertaining and innovative.[41][42]
[43][44][45][46] For his music videos, he has worked with a wide range of directors
such as Rimpy Prince, Amarjit Satwant, Parmod Sharma Rana and Azeem I Parkar. He
has been best appreciated for comic roles in the movies. In March 2016, Diljit
stated his dream role that he would love to play a pirate similar to Johnny Depp
did in the blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean series.[47] He regularly tours in
Canada/USA and, since 2014, in the United Kingdom. His 2016 "The Dosanjh Tour" led
to sold out concerts throughout the UK. As a result, he became the second Punjabi
artist after Gurdas Mann who sold out Wembley Arena.

In 2019, Diljit will be seen in the Navdeep Singh directed movie Kaneda[48]
produced by Anushka Sharma.