By Murtaza Ali

Over the last decade or so, Gippy Grewal has starred in some of Punjabi cinema’s biggest blockbusters such as Carry On Jatta, Jatt James Bond, Jihne Mera Dil Luteya, Manje Bistre, and Carry on Jatta 2, among others. He stars opposite Jasmin Bhasin in his new outing ‘Honeymoon.’ The romantic comedy film is directed by Amarpreet G S Chhabra and jointly produced by Bhushan Kumar, Harman Baweja, Krishan Kumar and Vicky Bahri.

Written by Naresh Kathooria, the film revolves around the story of a married couple who want to go on their honeymoon. But, the groom’s naive and extended family, blissfully unaware that a honeymoon is meant only for the newlyweds, tag along with them, as they have never been out of their village. Grewal got hooked to the idea fairly early in the scripting stage as the writer Naresh Kathooria is his long-term collaborator. “Naresh Ji narrated it me that it follows a couple who want to go on their honeymoon but their entire family also want to join them. These people are all from a rural background and don’t really understand what honeymoon is all about. For them, it’s a sort of a family outing and so they all want to be a part of it,” explains Grewal.

The film is shot in Punjab as well as UK. “Gone are those days when travel used to be a deal breaker for actors. So, the idea of travel is always very exciting. The facilities and support system today is so good while shooting overseas that most actors actually look forward to films which involve travel. In case of ‘Honeymoon,’ we are talking about an ensemble cast of around 16 people travelling together to the UK on the honeymoon which is only meant for the couple. So, yes, the scale is big in that sense but it’s also a lot of fun to be working with such a big cast,” rejoices Grewal.

Grewal describes the pandemic as a testing phase for all. But he also feels that the pandemic has also been a great time for individuals to rediscover themselves. “There was such great uncertainty as the shooting was completely suspended and amidst all that I had to ensure the wellbeing of my staff at all times. But we are all in it together and I am really glad that we were able to come out of it stronger. I think I am a better human being today than I was before the onset of the pandemic. It has been very tough but it has also been a great learning lesson,” recollects Grewal whose other upcoming projects include ‘Uchiyan Ne Gallan Tere Yaar Diyan’ and ‘Carry On Jatta 3.’ For Jasmin Bhasin, who hails from a Punjabi-Sikh family, ‘Honeymoon’ is nothing less than a homecoming. Having worked in the various regional industries in South India over the last decade, Bhasin is finally making her Punjabi film debut with the film. “Language was a major barrier for me when I started working in the South. Also, I was very young at that point in time. So over the years it’s always been very important for me to constantly learn and grow as an actor. I think I have a lot of maturity now which I didn’t have back then,” recounts Bhasin.

(Murtaza Ali Khan is an Indian Film & TV Critic / Journalist who has been covering the world of entertainment for over 10 years. He tweets at @MurtazaCritic)