'Aloo Chaat', 'Ek - The Power of One' and 'Videsh' all have either aPunjabi or someone settled in Punjab as the principal protagonist.

"In 'Aloo Chaat', I play the part ofan NRI who returns to his Punjabi family based inDelhi with a prospective bride," says Aftab Shivdasani, who is actually hard to be imagined as ayoung Punjabi man. However, director Robby Grewal, who is a Punjabi from Delhi,has ensured that the Punjabi milieu is very much on the forefront in his thirddirectorial outing.

While his supporting actors like KulbhushanKharbanda and Manoj Pahwa are shown to be hardcore Punjabis, there is thisentire culture drive revolving around Punjabiyat in the film. No wonder thefilm promises to feature Punjabi celebrations in full fervour. There are YashChopra style "ladies sangeets" featuring the entire cast of the filmtoo.

For director Sangeeth Sivan, it was obviousto move into a Punjabi setting once he settled down on Bobby Deol as hisleading man for 'Ek - The Power of One'.

"'Ek' is a remake of Telugu film'Athadu' and once I decided to remake the film with Bobby Deol in the lead,there was no other place to go than Punjab. The mustard fields there bring analtogether different look and feel to the film," says Sivan.

No wonder the romantic outings of BobbyDeol and Shreya Saran are in the mustard fields. The fight sequences featureBobby Deol taking on a bunch of Sikhs.

'Videsh', of course, is a serious film thathas been highly acclaimed well before its release in India. The film featuresPreity Zinta in the role of Chand, a young woman from Ludhiana who moves to theUS with her husband (Vansh Bhardwaj). She immediately faces challenges in hernew household with immense family pressure and lack of living space turning outto be the core problem areas.

"Though Preity is not a Punjabi bybirth, she looks extremely convincing as one," says an industry follower.

With more Delhi-based films like 'Love Aaj Kal' and 'It's My Life'releasing soon, there may be more portrayals of Punjabi culture on offer this year.