Celebrating 10 years of Carry On Jatta: The multi-starer legendary Punjabi movie has turned 10 today.
On this day in 2012, blockbuster Punjabi movie titled 'Carry On Jatta' had released in cinema halls across the globe. Wholly and completely a laugh riot in the most truest sense, Carry On Jatta had not just taken the Punjabi film industry by storm back in the day but continues to do so till date on the back of its evergreen content.
An ensemble cast comprising of Gippy Grewal, Mahie Gill, Gurpreet Ghuggi, Binnu Dhillon, Jaswinder Bhalla, BN Sharma, Khushboo Grewal, Rana Ranbir, Preeto Sawhney, Karamjit Anmol and Sardar Sohi had managed to deliver back-to-back comic punches to the extent that fans don't miss a chance of watching this movie even a decade after its release.
Smeep Kang and Naresh Kathooria were the primary brains behind this trendsetter movie which has played a mammoth part in taking the Punjabi film industry forward. Working with Kathooria for the second time after his directorial debut titled 'Chakk De Phatte' (2008), Kang had co-written the script and screenplay of Carry On Jatta with Kathooria (dialogues) in addition to directing the movie.
Celebrating 10 years of Carry On Jatta
An assortment of lies to cover one lie leading to confusion like never before made Carry On Jatta a Punjabi movie like no other. On the occasion of the movie's 10th anniversary, we spoke to writer Naresh Kathooria and actors Gurpreet Ghuggi and Khushboo Grewal about their memories of the movie.
Admitting that they were a bit skeptical about the prospect of an outright comedy movie working in the Punjabi film industry due to their past experience, Kathooria recited a particular incident which had happened right before the release of the movie to assure them of the film's success.
"Myself and Amberdeep Singh had written Chakk De Phatte. Smeep bhaji had directed it. But Chakk De Phatte hadn't worked that well at the box-office. Perhaps people weren't prepared for an out and out comedy movie back then. So, we were definitely a bit skeptical about Carry On Jatta initially," Kathooria told Punjabi Mania.
"I remember we had organized a trial [for our friends] in Mumbai. Kapil [Sharma] bhaji was also there. I clearly remember one particular incident which was very motivating before the release of the movie. We were only 6-7 minutes into the climax when [Gurpreet] Ghuggi bhaji's wife had failed to control her laughter to the extent that she had to ask us to stop the movie for a few minutes. People were laughing uncontrollably during that trial and this is where it came across our minds that there would be no stopping the movie from doing well."
Ghuggi, on the other hand, was the one to have discussions with Kang regarding the absence of outright comedy movies in the Punjabi language. Been there and done that albeit in a restriced space with DVD movies, Ghuggi was sure of Carry On Jatta doing well financially.
"I had done comedy movies like 'Ghuggi Chhoo Mantar' (2004), 'Ghuggi Yaar Gup Na Mar' (2008), 'Khich Ghuggi Khich' (2010) and many others. I was confident that people would enjoy Carry On Jatta because they used to like my movies [of a much shorter length]," Ghuggi told Punjabi Mania.
"Although our experiment with Chakk De Phatte had failed, I still believed that we could do something big if we form a team. Gippy Grewal joining us [in Carry On Jatta] was a huge advantage. Multiplexes had come in Punjab by 2012. These signs had given us surety with respect to Carry On Jatta's success."
Speaking of a 25-minute amusing chasing sequence at the climax, a first-of-its-kind in the Punjabi industry, it had taken the movie to a whole different level. A bigger and better episode of chortling at the end further upped the game with respect to uncontrollable giggling emotions.
Being asked about the confusion behind bringing confusion on-screen, Kathooria laid emphasis on getting everything right on paper before going on the floors. According to Kathooria, a perpetually undisturbed and cool director in Kang also worked wonders for the movie. However, Kang was equally involved in the laughter sessions which used to happen while shooting Carry On Jatta.
"We used to take six-six hours to shoot a three-hour ladder sequence [at night]. I mean we had a blast while shooting the movie. We used to literally burst out laughing. The 50-day journey of shooting Carry on Jatta was like heaven. So much enjoyment. So much laughter. All we were hoping for was luck to favour us this time and it did happen eventually," Kathooria added.
The on-set experience was endorsed by Khushboo Grewal who brought into the open that she would forget being part of the movie as an actor due to the sheer pleasure of watching actors with such fine comic timing perform on the sets.
"I remember I used to sit in front of the monitor [with Smeep] when [Jaswinder] Bhalla sahab, BN Sharma ji and Ghuggi ji used to perform. It was during the shoot only that I had started thinking about the final product and the enjoyment which people would receive upon watching the movie. Although you were expected to perform as an actor but the atmosphere was so jovial that one would forget that one is shooting a movie. Hilarious memories," Khushboo told Punjabi Mania about the on-set laugh riots while shooting Carry On Jatta.
"I remember my first scene [Suhagraat scene] of the movie was with Gippy. It was a perfect ice-breaker. We had shot that scene multiple times. First we used to shout and then we used to laugh in an unrestrained manner. Having shouted for 4-5 times, my throat had given up after a point."
Actors share experience of hearing first narration of Carry On Jatta
Gurpreet Ghuggi: I believe I must have heard this script some five years before the release of the movie. I used to live in Mumbai back then and Smeep had discussed it with me on multiple occasions. I was waiting for it to be made because I was sure ki eh Punjabi cinema di sab ton vaddi comedy film ban ke aayugi [This would become the biggest comedy film in Punjabi cinema] and it happened ultimately.
Khushboo Grewal: I remember Smeep had narrated this movie to me. His way of narration was so funny that I thought if I am laughing so much during the narration, people would enjoy it as well. I mean I was completely sold within the first 10 minutes of the narration itself.
And Smeep is a thorough gentleman. He works in a calm and composed manner which is great for an actor. And of course, being paired opposite Ghuggi ji is a big thing. He's such a big actor. It was an honour for me. You get to learn a lot.
Was Carry On Jatta inspired from a Malayalam movie?
Over the years, rumour has it that Carry On Jatta was inspired/adapted/loosely based on a Malayalam movie titled 'Chakkikotha Chankaran' (1989). Quashing all such rumours, Kathooria spilled the beans about never having even watched that movie.
A detailed response from the writer divulged all facts about the beginning of Carry On Jatta's writing process and how Kang had to fight a legal battle for 5-6 years before the High Court ruled the decision in his favour.
"Honestly speaking, I hardly watch Hindi movies. Watching an old Malayalam movie is a whole different thing. Not that I don't like South Indian movies, it's just that there's always this shortage of time. Let me tell you that Smeep bhaji's friends had made 'Kuch To Gadbad Hai' [2004]. It was an official Hindi remake of Chakkikotha Chankaran. They had bought the rights and all that.
"So, Smeep bhaji made me watch Kuch To Gadbad Hai and asked for a feedback and the possibility of doing anything around it in Punjabi. People usually take inspiration from super-hit movies but we took inspiration from a movie which didn't work at all [laughs].
"That being said, I made it a point that not even a single scene in Carry On Jatta would be taken from Kuch To Gadbad Hai. Hence, adapting or copying anything from the Malayalam movie was out of the equation. The makers of the Malayalam movie had filed a case on us. I remember Smeep bhaji was involved in that case for 5-6 years. The Honourable High Court had finally passed a verdict that both the movies are entirely different from each other," Kathooria mentioned.
Legacy of Carry On Jatta
Almost the same team had reunited after six years in another blockbuster titled 'Carry On Jatta 2' (2018). It wouldn't be a surprise if this team pulls off another coup in the form of 'Carry On Jatta 3' in the near future.
That said, Kathooria believes that the legacy of Carry On Jatta is beyond box-office collections, number of subsequents parts which the franchise will get or its official remakes in several other languages. Measuring the legacy in terms of respect earned from around the world, Kathooria thanked the almighty for blessing not just him but the whole team with Carry On Jatta.
"I don't think we'll ever be able to receive more respect for a movie than we've received for Carry On Jatta in all these years. We will make films, those films will do well but I don't think any film will get the love, recognition and shelf-life like Carry On Jatta.
"Ik film da successful hona aam gal hai par ik film nu ehni respect milni vaddi gal hai. Very thankful to god that we were blessed with Carry On Jatta. We are still reaping benefits from that movie," Kathooria concluded.
Did You Know?
1) Someone other than Smeep Kang was slated to direct Carry On Jatta initially. Kang had come in as a replacement at a future date.
2) Someother other than Gurpreet Ghuggi was supposed to play the role of Honey Tiwana initially.
3) Advocate Dhillon, a pivotal character played super successfully by Jaswinder Bhalla, wasn't part of the first few drafts of Carry On Jatta's script. In fact, it was added to the movie less than a month before the start of its shooting.
4) A sudden change in plan had initiated a conversation of ending the movie when Honey Tiwana runs with Preet Bhullar (Khushboo Grewal) in front of Advocate Dhillon. The situation had become tricky to the extent that even the producers had thought of omitting the climax sequence to potentially save 6-7 days of shoot. Kang and Kathooria intervened to the best of their abilities to take the producers in confidence and convince them to proceed as per the original script (Thankfully!).
First memory of Carry On Jatta from people within the industry
Rabby Tiwana (Founder, Troll Punjabi) - Those were my diploma days. Carry On Jatta had released amid houseful shows everywhere. People were like if you haven't watched this movie, you haven't watched anything. Then we visited the cinema halls but could only manage first row tickets due to the heavy rush. We liked the movie so much that we watched it again in the last row by booking our tickets in advance. Such a landmark movie!
Bikram Singh Batth (Founder, Cine Punjab) - I had a chance of watching Carry On Jatta within the first weekend of release at a houseful show in Surrey’s Guilford Mall. The atmosphere in the theatre was absolutely ecstatic with people enjoying all the punches by Gippy Grewal, Jaswinder Bhalla, Binnu Dhillon and others. I don’t remember a better Punjabi comedy movie where people of all ages were laughing out loud.
Even after the movie finished, people were seen imitating Binnu Dhillon’s hand gesture when he answers the phone and Jaswinder Bhalla’s kala coat dialogues. It was an absolutely memorable experience. Carry On Jatta released less than a month after 'Jatt and Juliet' (2012) and it just felt like Punjabi cinema had arrived with full force. Even till date, anytime COJ is being played on TV, I always have a blast watching the movie. Looking forward to COJ 3, 4, 5 and many more.
Gurwinder Lotay (Film journalist and writer) - I was not keen to watch Carry On Jatta initially. Had no expectations. It was only when film started picking up and some people started talking about it that I went to watch it. I was disappointed with first half being not up to the mark considering all the praises the film was getting. I had low expectations from second half too but, to my surprise, it just got better after this.
I remember Diljit [Dosanjh] had come to Ludhiana for a concert and shared the stage with Gippy for the promotion of Carry On Jatta. While Jatt & Juliet had better production value, I found Carry On Jatta to be the better one. I can watch it even today and get entertained in the same way.
Raj Tiwana (Executive Producer) - I watched the film in Vancouver with a packed house. Not a single seat was left empty. For first time, I WITNESSED the same reaction which you usually get to see in a Priyadarshan, David Dhawan, or a Rohit Shetty film. People were laughing out loudly, clapping, cheering, whistling and hooting. That was truly an experience to remember. Carry On Jatta's massive success and overwhelming response revived Punjabi Cinema. Truly a CULT classic.
