Punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanjh opens up about his humble beginnings, revealing how growing up in a financially struggling home shaped his relentless work ethic and ambition to be “rich and famous.“Despite being one of India’s biggest global artists today, selling out stadiums and arenas around the world, Diljit shares that his musical journey began by performing at weddings and birthday parties after the release of his debut album in 2002.Speaking in an interview with Q with Tom Power, the singer recalled how live performances unexpectedly became his main source of income.
“Making money has become like an addiction”
When asked about performing at weddings early in his career, Diljit said, “It was amazing. There’s a lot of money in that field.”Recalling how it all started, he shared, “My album came out in 2002 and 4-5 people came to my company and said we want to book this guy for a birthday party.”Initially, Diljit was not interested in singing at birthday parties, but since he was under contract, he accepted the bookings. It didn’t take him long to realize that album sales alone would not bring him a stable income.“So when they gave me the money, I thought this is the way,” he said, adding that earning money became “like an addiction.”“I didn’t say no to anyone. If someone offered Rs 5,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 15,000, I said yes. I didn’t say no to anyone. I went everywhere day and night,” he recalled.
Why did he stop performing at weddings?
Diljit also explained why he stopped accepting wedding shows.According to the singer, some senior artistes from the Punjabi music industry despised her wedding shows and explained that she is only fit for that circuit.Determined to prove himself, Diljit decided to chart a different path.“I said, ‘Okay, I am not doing wedding shows now. I’m going to start my concerts and I am going to plan the concerts,'” he said.
“Money is important because we don’t have it”
Reflecting on his childhood, Diljit admits that his dream of becoming rich came from growing up in poverty.He shared that as a child, he wanted to be “rich and famous”—someone everyone recognized, even if he didn’t know him personally.Although his perspective has changed over time and he now believes that “nothing matters,” he says financial security was his biggest motivation while growing up.“Because I come from a poor family, it’s like a below-average family. If you get sick, you don’t have money to see a doctor, so don’t get sick because you don’t have money,” he said. Experience taught him at an early age that “money is important,” pushing him to work tirelessly and embrace every opportunity that comes his way.Diljit released his latest studio album, Aura, in October 2025. He was recently seen in director Imtiaz Ali’s Hindi film Main Vaapas Aaunga.