Sonu Nigam apologises after comparing demand for Kannada songs to Pahalgam terror attack

Sonu Nigam. Pic via Instagram

Sonu Nigam has shared a video apologising to Kannadigas over his controversial Pahalgam remark ahead of his Bengaluru concert scheduled for October 24. Sonu's apology comes after the pro-Kannada organisation Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) had earlier demanded the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner to deny permission for the concert. It had also warned of protests.

Sonu Nigam apologises

In a video message shared, Sonu Nigam stated that he does not mind apologising thousand times if that saves his relationship with the Kannadigas. "When you love someone and want the relationship to last, you don't mind saying sorry a thousand times," Sonu said in Kannada.

"So, my dear family, if anything I've said inadvertently has hurt you, I'm so sorry. You know I'm not the kind of person who would ever hurt anyone, especially my family from Karnataka. You have given me so much love and respect over the last 30 years, and I don't want any small misunderstanding to taint that relationship or cause any bitterness," he further added.

The singer has issued the apology after facing threats from the pro-Kannada organisation. The organisation had demanded that the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner deny permission for singer Sonu Nigam's for his concert scheduled for October 24.

KRV issued protest threat

KRV had also warned of statewide protests if the event is held. KRV state president TA Narayana Gowda claimed that Sonu Nigam had insulted Kannadigas when he compared a request for a Kannada song to the Pahalgam terror attack back in 2025.

The incident happened in April 2025, when Sonu Nigam was performing at East Point College in Bengaluru. An audience member allegedly asked him to sing in Kannada, to which the singer responded, "The best songs I have sung are in Kannada... I didn't like it when a boy asked me to sing in Kannada. He was so rudely threatening, 'Kannada, Kannada.' This is the reason for the Pahalgam attack."

The remark had drawn sharp criticism from the Kannada people and sparked a backlash across Karnataka. KRV in his letter to the Police Commissioner on October 15, 2026, wrote, "Kannadigas have not forgotten this wound."