I wanted to protect the story’s soul, says Jagjeet Sandhu on why he turned director

Jagjeet Sandhu, the Punjabi and Hindi actor from films like Paatal Lok, The Diplomat and Punjabi films like Oye Bhole Oye, Tufang, Illti and Dakuaan Da Munda, has made the transition to filmmaking. Taking on multiple roles, that of director, producer, and lead actor on Oye Bhole Oye 2, he says the decision was driven by a desire to remain faithful to the story's original intent."Taking on the lead while also directing and producing allowed me to protect the soul of the story," Sandhu says. "I lived with Bhola from the very first line of the script to the final edit."On the practical demands of managing three major creative roles at once, Sandhu acknowledges the pressure but says the experience ultimately proved instructive. "Stepping into the director's chair for the first time while producing and acting was intense," he says. "Having total creative control helped me bring my exact vision to life."Thematically, the film engages with questions of land, identity, and agricultural heritage. Sandhu says his intention as a director was to depict how ordinary people respond when the things they have always taken for granted come under threat. "It is not about a loud hero," he says, adding, "It is about how Bhola's quiet honesty becomes a means of protecting a large part of our agricultural heritage."He describes the production as the most meaningful undertaking of his career to date, and one that reflects a longstanding interest in grounded, regionally rooted storytelling.