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Anurag Singh’s period war drama Border 2 has witnessed a historic start at the domestic box office. While a large part of the credit is being given to the return of Sunny Deol, who was also a part of JP Dutta’s 1997 blockbuster Border, other members of the cast are also getting their due. These include Varun Dhawan as well as Diljit Dosanjh, who plays 1971 Indo-Pak War hero Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon in the sequel.
Makers defend Diljit Dosanjh
But there was a point last year that there were rumours that Diljit would be dropped from Border 2. Excessive trolling towards the actor when the film was on the floors was believed to be the reason behind producer Bhushan Kumar of T-Series reportedly considering dropping him from the film. However, he maintained that Diljit is a part of Border 2, and has even defended him now after the release of the film.
“We were lucky to get all the actors on board. We had started the film, and then this pressure came. If, because of trolls, a company like us will start replacing people, then we shouldn’t make movies,” Bhushan told Hindustan Times. Even Anurag Singh defended Diljit, since Bhushan revealed he was the one who insisted on casting Diljit for Nirmal’s role, since the two had previously worked together in the hit Punjabi period drama Punjab 1984 (2014).
“You watch him on the screen or watch his interviews. But you don’t know him personally, and what his beliefs are. So you assume something and say things. But he isn’t what you think he is,” argued Singh. Last week, an overwhelmed Diljit revealed that he didn’t even have the money to buy a ticket to watch Border when it released in 1997. He never imagined that he’d one day be a part of its celebrated sequel.
Diljit Dosanjh's Sardaar Ji 3 controversy
The rumours of Diljit’s exit from Border 2 followed the controversy when Diljit co-starred with Pakistani actor Hania Aamir in Amar Hundal’s Punjabi comedy Sardaar Ji 3 in June. Since that was only a couple of months after the Pahalgam terror attacks in April, it invited the trolls’ ire for an Indian actor working with a Pakistani one even at a time when cross-border tension was at an all-time high.
The trolls worked overtime to ensure that Diljit is dropped from the two franchise films he’s signed back then — Border 2 as well as Anees Bazmee’s No Entry Mein Entry, a sequel to his 2005 blockbuster comedy No Entry. While Diljit did opt out of the latter owing to scheduling conflicts, he continued to shoot and eventually finished his part in Border 2.
Also Read — Border 2 Box Office Collection Worldwide Day 5 Updates: Sunny Deol’s film eyes Rs 300-cr globally; Alia Bhatt calls it ‘beautiful film’
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Border 2 has already crossed the Rs 200 crore mark at the domestic box office in just five days since release. Co-produced by T-Series and JP and Nidhi Dutta’s JP Films, it also stars Ahan Shetty, Mona Singh, Anya Singh, Medha Rana, and Sonam Bajwa among others. The makers have also announced that a threequel, Border 3, is also in the works.
