Nora Fatehi Reacts: ‘I shot the song in Kannada, had no idea about lyrics’
Live Events
‘AI images were used without approval’
‘I told director that this is not okay’
‘We have little power’
Nora thanks audience for backlash
She concluded with a note of caution for future projects.
as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Addas a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now!
(You can now subscribe to our
(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel
The controversy around the song “Sarke Chunar Teri Sarke” from the Kannada film KD – The Devil has taken a new turn after actor Nora Fatehi issued a public clarification. The song was removed after backlash over its lyrics and choreography, complaints were filed, and the matter even reached Parliament, where the government confirmed action had been taken. The issue gained attention after viewers objected to the content, leading to intervention by authorities. Earlier, a notice had also been issued by the NHRC, and the Information and Broadcasting minister said that freedom of expression is not absolute.Nora Fatehi said she agreed to the project mainly because it featured Sanjay Dutt and was part of a major film. She explained that she shot the song in Kannada and depended on the makers for translation.She said, “I shot this song three years ago in a language called Kannada, okay? Which is a part of a different industry called Sandalwood, okay? When I shot this song three years ago, I said yes to it because it was a part of a big film. It was with a big icon, Sanjay Dutt, who would say no to work with him? He’s such an icon. And it was a remake, at least that’s what I thought, of like, “Nayak Nahi,” which is also a very iconic song.”She added that nothing seemed objectionable when the song was explained to her on set.She said, “When I’m on set shooting for this song, I’m relying on the filmmakers to translate the song and that is what I go by, okay? When they’re translating the song, nothing seemed inappropriate or vulgar when they were translating the song to me. But then again, I don’t understand Kannada, so I’m just relying on whatever they’re telling me. Whatever they’ve done right now, which is creating a Hindi version and dubbing the voice in Hindi and having those lyrics, which are very inappropriate, I had no idea about that. They didn’t take any approvals. They didn’t take any permission from me.”Nora also raised concerns about how her visuals were used. She alleged that the makers created and used images without her consent, including AI-generated visuals.She said, “When I was invited for the launch at the event, I sat there and I saw the Kannada version, which first of all, I had a major issue with because they didn’t take any approvals from me when they created that lyrical version. They used very unflattering photos, and if anyone knows me, they know that I have to approve all my photos. They put this lyrical version without my approval, and they put it out there. Then they created an image of me and Sanjay Dutt, which was AI-generated, which I’m already against AI. So I was already feeling really irritated at the event when I saw what I saw.”According to Nora, the situation became clear when she heard the Hindi version at the launch event. She said she immediately flagged concerns to the director and chose to distance herself from the project.She said, “Then they played the Hindi version. Now, when they played the Hindi version, I knew it was a wrap. I knew we were going to have issues because at least I understand Hindi. I told the director, “This is not going to be okay. This is going to get a lot of backlash.” I disassociated myself with the project. As you can see, I didn’t promote it at all. I again flagged it to the director and I said, My image and reputation is on the line.'”She also explained why she did not react publicly at the event, saying she had to maintain decorum in front of media and filmmakers despite internal discomfort.Nora said she had limited control over how the final content was presented. She pointed out that actors do not always have the authority to influence such decisions.She said, “We have little power. We have little control.” She added, “However, there are certain places, you know, certain industries, they don’t listen. They don’t care about my opinion. That’s a conversation I think we can have on another day.”In an unusual turn, Nora thanked the audience for raising objections, saying it led to the removal of the song. She also urged media and viewers to hold filmmakers accountable instead of targeting actors.She said, “Because of this backlash, it pushed them to remove these, this, these songs, and I’m grateful for that. Also, just a side note to the media and to the pages that are consistently talking about this situation. If it bothers you guys so much, then you need to hold the filmmakers and the people who create such content accountable. You start using their name and images when such controversies arise. You start bombarding their name and images to the audience, because then only will they have some sort of fear, and they will feel some sort of accountability and some sort of responsibility when they create content. If you’re only going to bombard the audience with just the artist’s name and image, it’s counterproductive because we don’t have control of such scenarios. If you guys really, really, really want to find a solution, then you need to start holding the filmmakers and the people behind the content accountable,” she said.She said, “On that note, I will be more careful, and I will be more strict moving forward. I just want to say thank you for the backlash. Because of that they’ve been able to take it down, so thank you.”