Sona Mohapatra slams Sonu Nigam after support for Anu Malik over #MeToo allegations and his statement about Pakistani singers

Sona Mohapatra has slammed Sonu Nigam for the controversial statements he made at a recent event. The latter had recently backed Anu Malik amid the #MeToo allegations against him and had also joked that it was better if he was from Pakistan as he would’ve got offers to sing in India. 

READ: Me Too India: Singer Sona Mohapatra Accuses Anu Malik Of Sexual Harassment

Sonu had stated that Anu Malik, who he’s worked with on many songs, was accused of sexual misconduct without any proof. Giving the example of being harassed by a journalist ten years ago, he added that the music composer-singer didn’t say much about the allegations, though he could’ve done so.  

The singer questioned the ‘respect’ given to the accusers while they ‘tarnish’ his name. Sonu raised his voice against the ‘ban’ on him which ‘snatched his bread and butter’ and ‘tortured’ his family.  

 "If you say, 'Anu Malik met me this morning', that's fine. You accused him without any proof; let's accept that too. Had he [Anu Malik] wanted to say anything, he could have said a lot. But he did not. If I say that you misbehaved with me, you will ask me for proof. But there's no proof, right? Despite that, people are respecting the accusers, who are tarnishing Anu Malik's name. But how can you ban him? How can you snatch his bread and butter? How can you torture his family?" He was quoted as saying. 

Sona slammed Sonu’s comment on Twitter and took a dig at the ‘sympathy’ for the ‘millionaire losing work’ and empathy for the ‘privileged’ family being ‘tortured’’. She asked Sonu about the multiple women Anu allegedly ‘tortured’ and if the multiple testimonies were not proof enough. 

She added that there were more than 100 men and women who would attest to Anu Malik’s ‘deplorable abusive behaviour.’ The singer asked Sonu if all the women should wear strap recording devices and spy cams for proof, as she questioned claims of the accusers benefitting from their allegations against the music composer. 

Sona also wrote how she felt let down by Sonu, who she thought was ‘brighter than most of his peers, intelligent, talented, excellent at his craft and kind’. She rued the fact that he ‘choose the dark side to side up with’ and hoped he realises how ‘sad’ she felt it was.  

The event saw Sonu making another controversial statement. The singer had joked that sometimes he thought it’d have been better he was from Pakistan, as at least he would’ve got offers in India. He questioned Pakistani singers like Atif Aslam, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan being exempted from paying for music shows while their Indian counterparts were asked to shell out money for it. 

 "Sometimes, I feel like it would be better if I was from Pakistan. At least I would get offers from India," he said. He continued, "Nowadays, singers have to pay music companies for shows. If we don’t shell out the money, they will play songs sung by other singers and highlight them. Then, they will take money from them. They don’t do the same with Pakistani singers. But then why single only Indian singers out? Atif Aslam is a very close friend of mine. He is never asked to pay to sing at shows, neither is Rahat Fateh Ali Khan." 

After his comment sparked a row, Sonu had later issued a clarification on the quote, saying how journalists ‘missed the real content’ in an attempt to make headlines catchy. Calling it ‘pathetic’, he reiterated his point of Pakistani singers being exempted from paying to music companies, while the Indian singers had to do so.       

READ: #MeToo | Sona Mohapatra Accuses Kailash Kher Of Making Advances Towards Her

Nevertheless, Sona was not pleased with it again and asked him if Arijit Singh, Badshah, Vishal Dadlani were from Pakistan. She said he had his ‘moment under the sun’ as the country 'anoints a male superstar' in every few years. The singer asked Sonu not to ''blame the Pakistani artists' and also to not 'mix up' art, music with politics and ideology. 

Sona was one of the celebrities who had called out Anu Malik, calling him and Kailash Kher ‘serial predators’ during the #MeToo movement.