5 hours ago
39
Veteran
Kannada
filmmaker
K Ramnarayan
has taken a firm stand against playback singer Sonu Nigam following the controversy surrounding the latter’s comments at a Bengaluru concert. On Thursday, May 8,
Ramnarayan
announced that he has removed two songs sung by Sonu
Nigam
from his upcoming film
Kuladalli Keelyavudo
, stating that the singer’s apology was not sufficient.
Speaking to PTI, Ramnarayan said, "Just saying sorry will not cut it. Connecting
Kannada pride
to the national tragedy that happened in Pahalgam is a very grave mistake. He must pay a price for that."Ramnarayan revealed that the film, set to release in theatres on May 23, had originally featured three songs in its promotional rollout, two of which were sung by Sonu Nigam. One of those tracks was particularly significant: the title song, which is a tribute to the iconic 1965 Kannada film Satya Harishchandra, starring Dr. Rajkumar."In fact, he sang the title track, which is a tribute to possibly the most famous Kannada song, featured in legendary actor Rajkumar's 1965 film, Satya Harishchandra. The original Kuladalli Keelyavudo is so sacred for the
Kannada film industry
– our orchestra, while recording songs, ends by playing this song. How can this song be sung by someone like Nigam, who thinks so lowly of us?" Ramnarayan questioned.
The filmmaker said both tracks sung by Nigam, including
Manasu Haadtade
, are now being replaced with versions recorded by track singers. In music production, track singers typically provide demo vocals before final recordings.While the film’s team has already removed Sonu Nigam’s versions from their official YouTube channels, Manasu Haadtade remains live on the singer’s personal YouTube page.The controversy began at a Bengaluru concert, where Sonu Nigam allegedly shut down a student’s repeated request to sing in Kannada. The singer linked the request to the 2025 Pahalgam terror attack, a comment that was widely criticized. He reportedly said, "I had started singing Kannada songs even before he was born. This is why the recent attack happened... for such a kind of attitude. At least see who is in front of you before making such demands."Though Sonu Nigam later issued an apology on Instagram, stating that his love for Karnataka is greater than his ego, Ramnarayan believes that isn’t enough.
English (US)