Singer and actor Gippy Grewal isn’t the only star in his family. His second son Gurfateh Grewal, also known as Shinda, has also become a favourite in the film business. After appearing in films like Ardaas (2016), Ardaas Karaan (2019) and Honsla Rakh (2021) and music videos such as Sooraj, Naach Naach and Ice Cap, Shinda is all set to share screen space with his father in a Punjabi film for the first time. Titled Shinda Shinda No Papa, it is set in the UK and revolves around a father trying to get his naughty and mischievous son on the right track.
Shinda’s first tryst with acting happened a few years ago when he appeared in a music video. In an exclusive conversation with News18, Gippy says that his son ended up being a part of the video rather accidentally. “We had once shot for a music video in Vancouver. It was supposed to feature a child but he couldn’t turn up for the shoot for some reason. That’s when Shinda told me that he wants to do the part. It isn’t like he’s very keen on acting but he did it very well,” recalls the proud dad.
Gippy’s directorial debut Ardaas was the first film that Shinda had auditioned for. The Angreji Beat and Lahore singer reveals that he didn’t let his son record the audition in his presence. Quiz him about the same and he says, “When we were looking to cast a child in Ardaas, Shinda wanted to play the part. I told him that since we’re holding auditions, he needs to be a part of that process too just like anyone else.”
Gippy further adds, “Another reason why I wanted him to audition is that unlike a music video, a film set has many people and he needed to act in front of everyone. I wanted to make sure that he would be able to pull that off. After he finished auditioning, my team called me up and told me that Shinda was the best of the lot.”
He also tells us that he was initially apprehensive about casting him in the film as he didn’t want people to be accusing him of favouring his son. Talking about it, the 39-year-old says, “But we still tried other options. I didn’t want people to think that we took him onboard just because he’s my son. But Shinda fit the part because we needed a Sikh child with long hair wearing a turban.”
However, it was the Diljit Dosanjh, Shehnaaz Gill and Sonam Bajwa starrer Honsla Rakh that truly got Shinda noticed as it turned out to be one of the highest grossing Punjabi films. It saw Diljit and Shinda playing a father-son duo and their dynamic was widely lauded. “The makers told me that the part of Diljit’s on-screen son was written keeping him in mind. He had a full-fledged part in the film unlike most films where children usually don’t have very important roles,” says an elated Gippy.
Speaking about Shinda’s equation with Diljit, the Carry On Jatta (2012) actor remarks, “Shinda gets attached to people very easily. Diljit is also the same. I visited the set a few times and I saw that they used to have a blast together even off-camera. They gelled very well and that got translated on-screen. They looked very good together in the frame. Since people on the set knew me, and so, they were very loving and caring towards Shinda. Diljit, Shehnaaz and Sonam love him a lot. That made Shinda feel as if he’s the most important person on the set (laughs).”
And now that Shinda’s growing up, Gippy feels that his relationship with him is headed for a change. But he admits to being a rather cool dad, who will support him and his personal and professional choices through thick and thin. “Aaj ke date pe har bachcha apna marzi ka maalik hai. My responsibility as a parent is to give my children the best education and instill the best values in them. I’m a Punjabi and my priority is to acquaint them with their mother tongue before they learn any other language. But they belong to a generation that’s very familiar with the modern world including the concept of online dating. If they engage in it, I can’t really stop them. I can’t curb their freedom. The most that I can do as their father is give my opinion on their respective partners but the final decision is for them to take,” shares Gippy with a smile.
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