JIMMY SHERGILL FROM MACHIS TO SIKANDAR KA MUQADDAR
By
RUBY ZAIDI
Jimmy Shergill breakthrough came with the blockbuster musical romantic drama
Mohabbatein-2000, which became the highest-grossing Hindi film of the year, following which he starred in several other box-office hits including – Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai-2002, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.-2003, Hum Tum-2004, A Wednesday!
and few others.
Jimmy Shergill recently relived his struggles and how he got his first break through the classic film ‘Maachis’. During an interaction with the media people, Jimmy is currently promoting his film ‘Sikandar Ka Muqaddar’ talked about his hustle in the Indian Film Industry.
Jimmy said the way he came into the silver screen was far from conventional, with a mixture of surprises that have shaped his career. ‘Maachis-1996 is a film, directed by Gulzar, that starred Tabu, Chandrachur Singh, Om Puri, and others. The film was a box-office hit and won two National Film Awards: Best Popular Film and Best Actress for Tabu. However, Jimmy’s casting as Jaimal Singh in the film was an unexpected twist in his life.
During the conversation, Jimmy could recall how he approached Gulzar with aspirations of being an Assistant Director. He was of the mind that to get a break in the industry, a person needs to work as AD for years. But there was more to it by Gulzar.
Jimmy said, “I think its called hustle now. It was called struggle in our times. So the hustle is on. When I first met Gulzar sir, I thought he would hire me as his Assistant Director, I started going to his office, work on screenplay was in full swing and I joined the writers’ team and when the screenplay was done, I asked Gulzar Sir if I could get a chance in the technical crew, but Sir had other plans. He asked me which part do you think is the best among these three roles? I said all three of them are great. He said, ‘But, if you will have to pick one, who will that be?’ It was like dreams comes true, before a legendary director and being able to choose one character. I said, ‘If given an option, I will choose Jaimal Singh.’ He asked, ‘Why?’ I said, ‘His name is Jimmy and so is my pet name. Until now, Gulzar sahab knew me as Jasjeet Shergill. He said, ‘Oh, okay, do me a favour, grow your beard and hair because you are doing that role.’ I almost fell off the chair. That is how it all started.”
After ‘Maachis’, Jimmy starred in a film titled Jahan Tum Le Chalo, “I played the lead alongside Sonali Kulkarni, it was a good film but it wasn’t released properly, then some critically acclaimed films like ‘Mohabbatein’, ‘Dil Vil Pyar Vyar’, ‘Munna Bhai MBBS’, ‘Tanu Weds Manu’, and ‘My Name Is Khan’ happened.”
Now Jimmy Shergill’s ‘Sikandar Ka Muqaddar’, is streaming on an OTT platform.
Jimmy Shergill is known for his versatility and unconventional choices, and for focusing on his characters rather than being the hero.
He’s known for being one of the most versatile actors in Bollywood.
He’s known for making unconventional film choices, which he believes have led to more interesting work and audiences associating him with good roles.
He focuses more on the characters he plays rather than being the hero.
He’s so good that he owns every frame he’s in, no matter how popular or seasoned his co-star is.
He’s known for being very choosy about his roles.
His conscious decision to take on unconventional characters, starting with Haasil-2003, which marked a significant shift in his career.
Jimmy Shergill was born in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh and moved to Punjab in 1985. He’s often collaborated with producer-director Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Rajkumar Hirani.
