Sunny Deol reveals the industry doubted Gadar: Ek Prem Katha: ‘They didn’t even like the songs’

Sunny Deol discusses the skepticism Gadar: Ek Prem Katha faced before its release, highlighting the industry's disconnect with the audience.

Actor Sunny Deol’s Gadar: Ek Prem Katha is remembered as one of Bollywood’s most iconic blockbusters, but few know that the film was met with skepticism before its release. In a recent interview with Zoom, Sunny revealed that the industry not only doubted the film’s success but also dismissed its now-iconic music.

Despite initial doubts from the industry, Sunny Deol's Gadar: Ek Prem Katha became a cultural hit.(PTI)

Sunny opens up about how industry reacted to Gadar

Reflecting on how disconnected the industry was from the audience's pulse, Sunny said, “Whenever I used to play the songs for people, they didn't like them at the time. But now, the film takes itself along; it carries itself. Nobody can stop it. This happens because the industry and the audience are not in sync. When you get more, you forget. You drift apart from your craft.”

Sunny also shared that he was initially unsure about doing the film when director Anil Sharma approached him with the script. But everything changed after that first narration.

“When he narrated the subject, I just fell in love with it. The whole night we listened to the narration, and the discussion happened. And my only thing was that it had to look like that period. Because if that period is not shown, then the story won’t feel real. Working on it was a great experience throughout the film. I enjoy all my films, whichever one I do, because there are so many memories attached to them,” Sunny added.

Despite doubts from the industry, Anil Sharma-directed Gadar, which also starred Ameesha Patel, became a cultural phenomenon and a box office juggernaut. It earned ₹133 crore in 2001. Its 2023 sequel, Gadar 2, repeated history, becoming one of the highest-grossing Hindi films ever, earning ₹691.08 crore.

Sunny's upcoming project

Sunny Deol is set to return in Border 2, the sequel to the 1997 war epic directed by JP Dutta. He also has Lahore 1947, produced by Aamir Khan and co-starring Preity Zinta. Sunny will also play Lord Hanuman in Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana.