Singer Jasbir Jassi on his bond with Rishi Kapoor: He’s such a lively person, full of live and spreading positivity-Exclusive! – Times of India

It’s been two years since Rishi Kapoor passed away. His untimely demise came as a rude shock to the film fraternity and especially for the makers of his last film ‘Sharmaji Namkeen’. It’s almost been a month since the release of the film. While the film has been garnering praises from fans and critics alike, the title track of the film ‘Ye Luthrey’ too is being enjoyed and loved by all. Havingsaid that, the singer of the light-hearted track Jasbir Jassi opened up exclusively with ETimes on creating the song and also traveled back in time to cherish his fond memories with Rishi ji.

Jasbir shared, “Wherever I go, people always mention about ‘Ye Luthrey’. I never believed in myself, when it came to singing these type of songs. I am also growing older, and hence I wanted to more intense and serious songs. I had so much fun working on this. ‘Yeh Luthre’ is such a light hearted fun number. The other day, when I had gone out to fix my car’s tyre, the mechanic there too mentioned about the song, and it made me feel so happy, ” when asked about the response for the song.

When asked how he came on board, Jasbir revealed that he was attending a screening, when the makers caught up with him. “I was attending a film screening, when the makers approached me, and we sat through. I was told Rishi Kapoor is featuring in the film. I was extremely thrilled, and I knew what exactly the song should be like to make it really authentic to Rishi Kapoor. It was when we started working on the song, the news of Rishi Kapoor’s demise broke. It was very disheartening that he could not complete the film. And for me, I really really valued him”.

He also added, “I was really surprised when the makers told me that Paresh Rawal will step into the shoes of Rishi Kapoor and complete the film alongside him. At first, I was not sure how it will look, but it turned out really well and the response has been great. When the first look posters were out, I was really impressed how the makers created the same exact look and mannerism”.

When asked about his bonding with Rishi ji, he shared, “We’ve spoken always on calls. And with our phone calls, I can say, he’s such a lively person, wants to make sure, every moment is worth memorable. I spoke to him on the telephone for the first time, I remember it was through Vinod Khanna. He was in Jammu while I was in Mumbai.”

He also added, “Our meetings were pretty interesting too. I remember attending Times events . Two of my songs,‘Dillagi’, ‘Kudi Gujarat Di’ were backed by Times Music. Back then, in almost every award ceremonies and events. be it Femina, or Filmfare, we bumped into each other. He used to speak in Punjabi with me.

“When I first met him, he was at a hotel. He was having dinner and I was passing by. He looked up and waved to me. He asked me to sing. I sang a Munda Punjabi and they applauded. The whole restaurant was watching us. Neetu Ji, Abhishek, Kareena and Karisma were also present there. I still remember it fondly,” he signs off.