A dentist-turned-actor, Jayy Randhawa’s professional journey is full of milestones

Bikramjit Singh Randhawa, popularly known as B Jay Randhawa or Jayy Randhawa

Hometown

Born and raised in Sri Hargobindpur town of Punjab’s Gurdaspur district, Jayy moved to Kapurthala in 2001 and settled there. He presently resides in Mohali owing to his work commitments.

Family

Jayy’s mother is a homemaker, and his younger brother is settled abroad.

Education

After matriculating from Christ King Convent Senior Secondary School, Kapurthala, in 2009, Jayy completed his Class 12 from city’s MGN Public School in 2011. To fulfill his parent’s wish, he further joined Bachelor of Dental Surgery at Patiala’s Luxmi Bai Institute of Dental Sciences and Hospital and graduated as a dentist in 2016.

Favourite song

There are no favourites as such. I am open to listening to all kinds of music, depending on mood.

Favourite movie

Again, I watch films of all genres from across Pollywood, Bollywood, Hollywood, and Tollywood.

How did you get into this field?

Ever since childhood, I was interested in working in the television or the film industry. Besides, I was passionate about martial arts and even became the national champion thrice. Unfortunately, I was later banned from participating in the championship for punching a boy who had misbehaved with me. However, this ban did not deter my zeal, it rather shifted my focus towards learning and practicing stunts, which eventually got me my first work as a stuntman in the industry. This opened the doors for the Punjabi entertainment for me and the rest is just history.

Works till date

From humble beginnings as a stuntman in Punjabi singer Nirmal Sidhu’s song ‘Khangoora’ in 2008, and Ravinder Grewal’s ‘Jatt Ki Ghat Ki’ in 2012, Jayy became a show presenter for 9X Tashan’s ‘Tashan Da Peg,’ wherein he interviewed numerous Pollywood and Bollywood artists and was a huge hit.

He further showcased his singing talent through various music videos including ‘Theth Gabru’, ‘By God’ Ft. Karan Aujla, ‘Star’ Ft. Sukh-E, ‘Fitoor’ written by Jaani, ‘Nature’ Ft. Miss Pooja, ‘Peg’ Ft. Sharry Maan among others. Jayy has also worked as a lead in Punjabi films titled ‘Shooter’ (2022) and ‘Chobbar’ (2002). Both these films are available on Chaupal OTT.

Upcoming projects

Next, the artist will be seen in two Maneesh Bhatt directorial projects. The first is a Punjabi film titled ‘Medal’ along with popular singer Baani Sandhu while the second is ‘Durlabh,’ based on the life of an infamous gangster named Durlabh Kashyap.

Claim to fame

My song ‘By God’ featuring Karan Aujla was my claim to fame. It has more than 75 million views on YouTube and was a trending hit for the longest time. Owing to the song’s success, people in the industry also began acknowledging my work.

My secret sauce

There is no doubt that hard work, consistency, and self-belief is my secret sauce. However, there is more to it. I find inspiration from my personal life story that has been full of roller-coaster rides and yet so rewarding. I gather motivation from it and from the people who encourage me for all that I do. It just keeps me going to follow my dreams and passions.

Thoughts about Pollywood

Pollywood is a business-oriented industry where your sale value matters the most. It’s not a place for cultivating friendships or relationships. It’s more like a jewelry store where actors are like different jewels, holding different worth, waiting to be sold. Therefore, it’s important for artists to focus on increasing their worth and capitalize it.

As an industry, Pollywood had grown immensely. The growth of the Punjabi music industry has been phenomenal in the last few years. Our artists have taken the world by storm.

Challenged faced

Transitioning from a stuntman to a host to singer and, finally, to an actor was not at all a cakewalk. At every step, there was fear of non-acceptance by industry folks and by the people. But all of it was worth the risk and the effort. Another challenge was to identify the people who meant good for me during my struggle and uplifted me in the right direction. I am so glad that I could find a guide in music director Arvinder Khaira who supported me in my journey. Sadly, there are not many people in the industry who would motivate a struggling artist and show him/her the right way. They would however always be ready to misguide you, exploit you and let you down. Therefore, one must choose his/her people consciously.

Future plans

Through all my works, I plan to become India’s most selling artist in the future. (Keeps his fingers crossed)

Fitness mantra

Fitness is my priority, and I am very careful about eating and living healthily. I follow vegetarianism and I don’t smoke or consume alcohol. Walking and running are an integral part of my routine that keep me fit.

Mantra of success in acting

Don’t just focus only on improving your acting skills. Broaden your horizons. Know what you are doing and why you’re doing it. Be wary of the consequences. Get to know your director, co-actors, script, and every other thing that is a part of the process of filmmaking.

Turning point into life

The first was when I got my first brush with the reality of the industry folks. It was at the time when I was stepping up from the role of an anchor to becoming an actor. I lost faith in a lot of people. The second turning point was the release of my ‘Shooter’ which got immense appreciation from the Punjabi audience. Even though the movie faced its own course of struggles till finally coming out in cinemas this year, it still is a crucial point as it marks my launch as an actor.