Sonu Nigam responds to controversy: I was threatened by 4-5 thugs, no hate towards Kannadigas

Playback singer Sonu Nigam.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Playback singer Sonu Nigam has responded to the controversy related to his recent concert in Bengaluru. During his performance at the East Point College in Virgonagar, Sonu Nigam lost his cool at a fan who demanded him to sing a Kannada song.

The singer sparked a row when he compared the incident with the recent Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. On stage, during his concert, Sonu Nigam said, “This is why the Pahalgam attack happened. For such kind of an attitude. At least see who is in front of you before making such demands. I didn’t like it (the way he asked),” said Sonu Nigam, adding that he has immense respect and love towards Kannadigas.

Fans felt the singer’s comparison of the incident with the Pahalgam attack was “bizarre” and slammed him for his remarks. A pro-Kannada outfit also filed a case against the singer for “inciting linguistic hatred.”

On May 03, 2025 (Saturday), Sonu Nigam responded to the controversy, saying “he was threatened by 4-5 thugs” at the concert. “People in the crowd even told them to not disturb the concert. Lot of others asked me in a polite manner,” he said in a video shared on his Instagram account.

The singer said that the few men began demanding Kannada songs right from the beginning. “My show hadn’t even started and these guys looked at me in a rude manner and demanded me to sing Kannada songs. No artiste should allow their audience to threaten him or her,” he said.

Sonu Nigam also spoke about his Pahalgam terror attack comment that left the fans furious. “We need to remind such people that at Pahalgam, people weren’t asked about their language before being killed.”

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He added that he has no hatred towards Kannadigas. “They are very sweet people. At every concert, I bring a one-hour set of Kannada songs.”

Sonu Nigam is one of the most sought after singers in the Kannada film industry after the humungous success of the 2006 film Mungaru Male. He has sung chartbusters in films such as Gaalipata (2008), Milana (2007), Sanju Weds Geetha 2 (2011) and more.