Bengaluru: Playback singer Sonu Nigam has apologised to Kannadigas over his 2025 remark that linked a demand for a Kannada song to the Pahalgam terror attack, clearing the way for his concert in the city on October 24.
The apology came after the pro-Kannada outfit Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) wrote to the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner asking that permission for the concert be refused, and warned of statewide protests if it went ahead. After the singer spoke to KRV state president T A Narayana Gowda, the organisation called off its protest.
In a video message, Nigam said, "When you love someone, and you want the relationship to stay, you don't mind saying sorry 1000 times. So my dear family, if anything I've said inadvertently that has hurt you, I am so sorry for it."
He said he had received love and respect from Karnataka for 30 years and did not want a misunderstanding to spoil that bond. Gowda said there was no personal enmity towards the singer, whose songs people in the state had long enjoyed, and that it was time to move on.
The controversy dates to April 2025, when Nigam, performing at a college in Bengaluru, objected to the way a member of the audience repeatedly demanded a Kannada song. His remarks, which referred to the Pahalgam attack, drew widespread criticism, and an FIR was registered at the Avalahalli police station after a KRV complaint. Nigam apologised then as well, saying his love for Karnataka was bigger than his ego.
His concert, part of The Revolution India Tour, is scheduled for 7 pm on October 24 at Bhartiya Mall of Bengaluru on Thanisandra Main Road.