After recently criticizing Bollywood celebrities for promoting alcohol, Punjabi singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh has now called on the government to enforce similar censorship on films.
A week after the Telangana government banned him from performing songs that promote alcohol, drugs, and violence during his Hyderabad concert, Dosanjh responded to the criticism of his lyrics. He demanded that the same level of censorship be applied to Indian films.
While performing in Lucknow at the Ekana Football Stadium as part of his Dil-Luminati tour, Dosanjh took a moment to address the backlash. He reminded the public that many of his hit songs, such as Born to Shine, GOAT, Lover, Kinni Kinni, and Naina, have nothing to do with alcohol, yet are more popular than his song Patiala Peg, which had sparked the controversy.
In a video shared on Instagram, Dosanjh said, “There’s an anchor who challenged me to create a hit song without mentioning alcohol. For your information, I’ve already done that with songs that are more popular than Patiala Peg.”
He continued, “I’m not defending my songs or myself. What I want is for the same censorship to be applied to films. In Indian cinema, the bigger the gun, the bigger the hero. Which actor hasn’t done a song or scene related to alcohol? I can’t remember one.”
Dosanjh emphasized that if censorship is to be enforced on songs, it should also extend to films. “Artists are soft targets,” he said, adding, “There are films of mine that have won National Awards. My work is not cheap.”
He also pointed out the hypocrisy of simply placing health warnings at concerts, stating, “It’s easy to run a disclaimer about alcohol being harmful during concerts, so why target us? We’re all in the same boat.”
The controversy began when the Telangana government issued a notice ahead of his Dil-Luminati tour concert in Hyderabad, restricting the singer from performing songs with themes of alcohol, drugs, and violence. Despite these restrictions, Dosanjh adjusted his performance and delivered an energetic show.
The Dil-Luminati tour is scheduled to continue with sold-out shows in Pune, Kolkata, Bangalore, Indore, Chandigarh, Mumbai, and will conclude in Guwahati on December 29.
