Gippy Grewal says he cleaned toilets in Canada even after his first hit song: 'I used to work as a security guard'

Dubai: Gippy Grewal has shared a candid look at the struggles he faced before establishing himself in the Punjabi film industry, revealing he worked as a security guard and cleaner in Canada even after scoring his first big hit.

The journey to his first hit

Speaking to Bharti TV, Gippy said he comes from a regular farming family and had to borrow money to record his first album, which failed to take off. His second album fared no better, but he decided to try once more with a third. By then, he had married and moved to Canada with his wife, where the couple were struggling financially.

"After getting married, they say your stars align. One song from the third album was picked up, and that worked. That became my first hit. It was playing at every wedding. That song changed my life," he said, recalling his breakout track, Phulkari.

A hit song, but no income

Despite Phulkari becoming a sensation, even playing widely across Canada, Gippy said no one realised it was his song, and the success did not translate into earnings. He continued working as a security guard to support his family.

"I used to work as a security guard back then. Even though my song was a hit, I had to make money to survive and for my family. I knew that until I have a high income as a performer or singer, I needed to work to pay the bills," he said.

Juggling multiple jobs

Gippy revealed that his wife was working two jobs at the time, starting at Subway at 6am before moving on to a security shift, which is how he ended up at the same workplace. His own guard duties involved sitting outside a closed factory overnight, doing rounds every two hours and calling in to confirm everything was secure.

"I had to make a call every two hours after inspecting and say 'Everything is safe and secure.' Just memorising that line took me two days. My English was quite limited back then," he said.

Beyond guard duty, Gippy said he would work until 4am, then pick up his wife and the pair would distribute newspapers together for two hours. The couple also took up cleaning jobs at a mall, with his wife clearing trays in the food court while he swept the premises.

"I had to do everything. I had to clean the toilets also," he said.

Finding meaning in hard work

Gippy reflected that while it may have looked like an extraordinary struggle from the outside, particularly to people back in India, it was simply what needed to be done for a comfortable life.

"In other jobs, I would make 8 dollars, but in the mall cleaning job, I would get almost 13 dollars. Like with the newspapers, my wife and I would think that this is our time together. So we would keep talking the whole time and get done with that job in two hours," he said.

Gippy and his wife Ravneet are now parents to three sons.