Guru Randhawa: India’s Pop Superstar Eyes a Film Career with His Debut Movie

Punjabi music’s tight grip on Indian pop culture remains unchallenged. Look around you – it is nearly impossible to escape its infectious joy generously supplied via new-age dhols, evolving bhangra beats, and predictable lyrical bravado. You only have to listen to any current Bollywood mixtape (formerly known as OST) or visit a local club to witness our national obsession with music that makes us get up and dance. 

The Punjabification of Bollywood, and by association the mainstream Indian music economy as a whole, started way back in the Nineties thanks to the regional culture’s universally appealing ethos: its larger-than-life-ness in words and beats, invariably spearheaded by big voices. And the mind-boggling diversity of it: there isn’t a contemporary genre that hasn’t gained from the Punjabi Midas touch – we’ve got everything from bhangra-rap, Punjabi soul, and timeless acoustic ballads. Bhaag Milkha Bhaag even offered Punjabi bluegrass in “Slow Motion Angreza.” The consumers of both live and recorded Punjabi music run far and wide around the globe, with both domestic and diasporic populations offering a ready and captive audience.

If Bollywood cult classic Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995) got us romancing Punjabi everything, YouTube got us properly addicted in the past decade, with Yo Yo Honey Singh, Diljit Dosanjh, Badshah, and Sidhu Moose Wala becoming irreplaceable icons. 

It was in 2012 that another big voice from Gurdaspur, Punjab, debuted on the circuit. Guru Randhawa’s first album, Dardan Nu (2013), might have performed moderately but the next few years would see a star on the rise. For most listeners, it was “Patola,” Randhawa’s collaboration with Pakistani-American hip-hop icon Bohemia in2015 that signalled a real change of course. Fun fact: it was Bohemia who gave Gursharanjot Singh Randhawa his stage name, Guru.

“Patola” went instantly viral, catapulting him into the limelight. Then came subsequent hits like “Yaar Mod Do” and “Tu Meri Rani,” and we knew Randhawa had cracked some kind of code to mainstream stardom. It was simply Randhawa’s sonorous pop tone that got everyone hooked; unlike the many earthy, folksy voices on the market, Randhawa’s contemporary, almost ‘global’ texture was irresistible on “High Rated Gabru,” “Suit” and “Tu Meri Rani.” 

In 2019, Randhawa won the Dada Saheb Phalke Award winner in the Most Trending Singer category. “If your music works and hits high numbers, that’s a blessing,” Randhawa says. The past year has been no less exciting for the Delhi-based singer. There have been back-to-back hits like “Mehendi Wale Haath,” “Doob Gaye” and “Nain Bengali,” the first song from India to cross 70 million views in 24 hours and more than 100 million views in 50 hours. What do these accolades mean for Randhawa? He says, “I make sure I keep working hard and make the most of any opportunities I come across, with that hard work.” 

Randhawa’s strategic and creative synergies with fellow artists have lent his career an almost dream-like aspiration: His collaborators alongside Bohemia include Milind Gaba (singer, songwriter, and music producer) for “Yaar Mod Do” and rapper Haji Springer for “Tu Meri Rani” (2016). This song was later recreated as “Ban Ja Rani” in the film Tumhari Sulu. The same year marked Randhawa’s second collaboration with British singer-songwriter Arjun for “Suit” – one of his most popular songs. In September 2016, he partnered with singer-composer-producer Rajat Nagpal and released a track titled “Fashion”. In due course, he collaborated with American rapper Pitbull on “Slowly Slowly” in 2019, his maiden international collaboration, and his sophomore crossover “Surma Surma” came out with British singer Jay Sean in 2020. Randhawa also worked on a music video for the song “Mueve La Cintura” (2019) with Tito El’ Bambino, which is included in Pitbull’s album Libertad 548 – his second collaboration with the American rapper.

In our 2019 cover interview, Randhawa, ever the sharp-shooter, had also said, “Punjabi music has always been big and always will be. Bollywood doesn’t need Punjabi music nor does Punjabi music need Bollywood.”

He’d also credited the Internet for creating deserving superstars. “Today it’s easier for an artist to get discovered because of so many mediums. You can showcase your talent and easily approach directors, producers, composers and audiences,” he’d said, adding, “Back in the Nineties, there were few mediums besides radio and TV and the access was tough. But today, you can upload a video and become a superstar overnight.”

With every month bringing new and bigger milestones, Randhawa’s goalposts too are scaling at a rapid pace. This could well be the stuff pop-star dreams are made of. “I think goals and dreams keep changing. It all depends on what I’m doing each day and at a particular moment because sometimes things don’t work according to plan, and sometimes what you didn’t even plan for tends to happen.”

Next up, the singer is gearing for an acting career. “Recently, I signed my debut movie with Endemol as an actor and I’m quite excited about it.”

 In a candid conversation with Rolling Stone India, he talks about his songs, artistry, and the dreams he is yet to realize. Excerpts:

Your recent single “Dance Meri Rani” is a hit. You gave us a foot-tapping number marked by Afro-beats whisked into a music video with a fairytale ambience. It’s quite different from your past iterations. With almost a decade in the business, how important is it for you to keep reinventing yourself as an artist? Is it challenging at times?

“Dance Meri Rani” was an amazing collaboration with so many great minds working on it. Bhushan Kumar’s vision, Nora’s moves, and Tanishk Bagchi’s composition – all of it blended in so well to become this masterpiece.

When it comes to Punjabi pop, you are probably the most consistent. How has utilizing the force of Punjabi pop aided your craft?

I think when you experiment and listen to new artists, and when you are influenced by the creative people that you meet, it definitely adds to your music and something new and fresh comes out. I believe that to stay consistent and enhance one’s music, one has to be a good listener too. Also, music changes every year or every month, and now it [even] changes every day, so one has to keep listening to new music to enhance their own skills and knowledge. Honestly, with so many years in music and wanting to do so much more music, I feel that listening to a new artist every day aids my craft too.

You’ve said in a prior interview that you believe in the numbers game. You value being on top. Please elaborate on this a bit more.

I believe each one of us works hard to fulfil our dreams and make our parents proud. That is something I value the most, and if your music works and hits high numbers, that’s a blessing – God has been very kind to me. I’m thankful for it each day.

Your ascent in the industry is a huge success story. What is your next big goal now that you’ve attained this level of success?

I think goals and dreams keep changing. It all depends on what I’m doing each day and at a particular moment because sometimes things don’t work according to plan, and sometimes what you didn’t even plan for tends to happen. So, I make sure I keep working hard and make the most of any opportunities I come across, with that hard work. Recently, I signed my debut movie with Endemol as an actor and I’m quite excited about it.

I saw your Instagram post on your next “power-packed” song “Designer,” which will see you collaborating with Yo Yo Honey Singh. The title of the song piqued my interest. Explain how the song came about.

We made this song in 2020, but due to the Covid restrictions, we couldn’t shoot [a video for] the track. Also, around the same time, Honey bhai was getting fit and so was I. So, we recently shot this song on a grand scale and its release is on May 19th on T-Series. It’s a very unique collaboration and it couldn’t get bigger than this. When I sent the rough melody to Honey bhai, he absolutely loved it and said that he would produce it, and he has indeed added his magical touch to it. When he sent his version to us, we instantly loved it and locked it. Bhushan sir loves it too. And the video is one of the finest we have worked on. We have Divya Khosla Kumar in it, too. I’m so excited and cannot wait for my fans to see this.

Speaking of collaborations, you’ve worked with a diverse range of national and international musicians. When it comes to choosing someone to collaborate with, how do you go about it? And who is the one artist you’d like to work with?

I think collaborations just happen. You end up meeting people who are just like you and who want to work with you or, conversely, you want to work with, and I think that’s how the biggest Indian or international collaborations have happened. If God presents an opportunity, I would definitely love to collaborate with Hans Zimmer or sing for any of his compositions. That would be a dream come true.

“We have to keep
working hard on ourselves
each day because you
never know when that
moment arrives”

Your next album Unstoppable is generating a lot of buzz, and we’ve already received a sneak peek of “Signs,” one of the songs in it.  Tell us more about the project.

My album has been a long time coming and I’m quite excited for my fans to hear it. Honestly, this project is close to me – I’ve been working on it since the lockdown and cannot wait to share it. We have shot a few songs and are in the process of shooting a few more. Hopefully, we’ll be able to drop the album next month.

Your discography boasts singles, albums, film songs, and so on. You’re also branching out and getting ready to make your film debut. Are you still eager for more with so much already on your plate? What’s the bigger picture?

I think I can do a lot more and the lockdown actually gave us so much time to prioritize our responsibilities and refine our choices. I’m grateful to God to present me with these opportunities. The bigger picture would be doing a Hollywood movie and music.

Does pop icon Guru Randhawa miss Gursharanjot Singh Randhawa at any point? Do you ever wish you could turn back time?

I think that [Gursharanjot Singh Randhawa] is me only and stays with me forever. Why would I miss something that’s me? Artists have two kinds of life – one onstage and one offstage. When I’m offstage, it’s just the normal me.

What is your message to budding singers, particularly those who look up to you?

Keep working hard and never feel less about yourself. We have to keep working hard on ourselves each day because you never know when that moment [of opportunity] arrives, and if you are not ready you might miss the chance. So, keep working on your craft. Stay focused and stay healthy.

Art Director: Tanvi Shah
Fashion Editor: Neelangana Vasudeva
Art Assistant: Siddhi Chavan
Brand Director: Tulsi Bavishi
Photographer: Rohit Gupta
Make-up Artist: Arveen Sandhu
Hair Stylist: Ali Khan
Location Courtesy: Saaman Farmstay Boutique B&B
Artist PR: Kush PR & Brand Strategist