The Less Routine, the More Life. Following this
principle is the man who started his second innings in the form of ‘Punjab Film
City’.
“Punjab Film City is north India's own film city”, says Apjinder Singh
Cheema, the founder of Punjab Film City. Cheema, before founding Punjab Film
City, has had a diverse experience.
In his early days, he also founded Cheema Boilers
Limited (CBL) and has worked extensively in the field of chemical engineering.
He was famously called the Boiler Man. CBL has been manufacturing boilers and
allied products for the last two decades and has earned recognition as a
research-driven organization that sets benchmarks for innovative technologies.
When asked about this sudden shift from being in
the chemical and research industry to venturing into the world of studios and
entertainment, Cheema says “The idea and the thinking was to give a platform to
Punjab’s Youth. The Punjabi Entertainment Industry has immense potential but due to lack of
infrastructure, it fails to put forth its best foot forward. I just wanted to
bridge the gap and do my bit to connect the youth with the opportunities in the
entertainment industry”.
Cheema accredits his journey to a book he read
during his college days. “When I read Avsar ko Pehchano by Swett Marden, my
life changed. Reading that book was the turning point of my life. It made me
realize how powerful every opportunity is. I became a whole new person after
reading that book and it inspired me to leave behind my then routine job and
start the mega Punjab Film City project”, adds Cheema.
Punjab Film City aims to build a culture of
learning. Cheema believes that whatever he has achieved as of now has been
through lessons from people closely connected to him, be it the bedtime stories
he heard from his grandparents or lessons from his coworkers. Cheema always had
this knack of picking learnings from his immediate environment.
