MUMBAI, India — Actress Nora Fatehi has responded to the controversy surrounding her song “Sarke Chunar Teri Sarke” from the film “KD: The Devil,” saying she had raised concerns with the filmmakers early on and chose to distance herself from the project.
In a video posted on Instagram, Fatehi said she had been largely unaware of the backlash due to personal circumstances, including the recent loss of a close friend and limited access to communication.
“I just want to come on here to discuss this controversy regarding the song. First of all, I’m in the middle of grieving a loss of one of my closest friends and I’m also in the middle of nowhere with no network so I haven’t been able to see what’s going on but I’ve gotten some updates today because I got a little bit of network so I do want to clarify a couple of things,” she said.
Fatehi explained that she filmed the song three years ago in Kannada for the South Indian film industry, also known as Sandalwood, and agreed to the project in part because it featured actor Sanjay Dutt.
“One, I shot this song three years ago in a language called Kannada okay, which is a part of a different industry called Sandalwood, and 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 of ‘Khal Nayak Hoon Main’, at least that’s what I thought,” she said.
She added that she relied on the filmmakers’ translations during filming and was not aware of any objectionable content at the time.
“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. 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 with whatever they’re telling me,” Fatehi said.
The actress said she later learned that a Hindi version of the song had been created without her approval and acknowledged that its lyrics were inappropriate.
“I had no idea about that. They didn’t take any approvals they didn’t take any permission from me,” she said, adding that she also objected to a Kannada lyrical version that used unapproved images of her.
Fatehi further alleged that an AI-generated image of her and Sanjay Dutt was used in connection with the song, which she said she strongly opposed.
“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,” she said.
She said she raised concerns directly with the film’s director after seeing the Hindi version at the launch.
“Then they played the Hindi version. I knew there will be issues because at least I understand Hindi. I told the director this is not going to be okay, this is this is going to get a lot of backlash,” she said.
Fatehi added that she chose not to promote the project and had flagged the issue multiple times, citing concerns about her reputation.
“I disassociated myself with the project as you can see, I didn’t promote it at all. I again flagged it to the director I said my image and reputation on the line,” she said.
The actress also reflected on the challenges faced by artists without industry backing.
“Here’s the thing, artistes like me, who don’t really have this backing, we’re not nepo kids, we don’t come with a certain power behind us. We’re just individuals and the audience which is behind us,” she said.
Fatehi said she plans to be more cautious in selecting projects going forward and thanked critics for raising concerns that led to action.
“On that note I will be more careful and I will be more strict moving forward and yeah I just want to say thank you for the backlash because of that I’ve they’ve been able to take it down so thank you,” she added. (Source: IANS)
