'Chamak' explores Punjabi music industry roots, politics and crime: Rohit Jugraj

Mumbai: Fame and crime are interlinked in the Punjabi music industry, says writer-director Rohit Jugraj, who is exploring this dynamic in his OTT debut series "Chamak".

The musical thriller follows Kaala (Paramvir Singh Cheema), a young aspiring rapper who comes back to Punjab from Canada to unravel the death of Taara Singh, a legendary singer who was shot dead during a packed performance.

"All of us groove to Punjabi music and beats during all kinds of occasions from a cricket match, marriage to concerts. It is high time we know the roots of that industry, the politics, the people and the human emotions behind it. We need to get a low angle to Punjabi music," Jugraj, known for films such as “Jatt James Bond”, and “Sardaar Ji”, told PTI in an interview.

"The reach of Punjabi music is wide, so there's money and crime. It's an interesting world to explore. The audiences are going to love this world," he added.

Noted Punjabi artists such as Amar Singh Chamkila and Sidhu Moosewala were killed in the state. Chamkila was gunned down in 1988 and Moosewala in 2022.

The director said insecurity among artists in Punjabi music industry often leads to incidents of crime and "Chamak" is a deep dive. The series starts streaming on SonyLIV from December 7.

"There were a lot of things that I saw up close and personal. Like, a very famous rapper in an interview said, 'I'm the Rolls Royce of rappers, everyone else is a Nano. Then, the other rapper went and bought a Rolls Royce... These things happen in which industry? "I loved looking at this competitive spirit. I've always felt this could be an interesting story. The jealousy, the insecurity in the Punjabi music scene run high because there's immense talent. There are incidents in our series which are true." While "Chamak" was inspired by many true incidents, Jugraj said he has added a personal touch by creating a fictional story and imaginary characters.

"It is a father-son story, where the son realises that his father was a legendary singer and he was killed. It is tied together in the modern times with the entire Punjabi music industry and there are many true incidents which we have touched upon. It is my interpretation of those events," he said.

The show boasts of many cameo appearances including Gippy Grewal, Mika Singh, Malkit Singh, MC Square, Afsana Khan, Asees Kaur, Sunidhi Chauhan, Kanwar Grewal, Shashwat Singh, and Harjot Kaur.

Jugraj said that he had approached Moosewala for a guest appearance in "Chamak".

"I had approached him to play a cameo in the second episode, his name is still written on my script, and the good people of SonyLIV have retained that as a mark of respect. It was very generous of him (to say yes).

"I've spoken to him over the phone, this was last year in the beginning, he said, 'Paaji, we will work together'. I feel everyone in Punjab feels so much for music. When you asked Param if he has prepared anything or not, I think half the prep is done by being born in Punjab," he said.

"Chamak" is produced by Geetanjali Mehelwa Chauhan, Jugraj and Sumeet Dubey.