Oftentimes, popular Indian songs give momentum in the films, but they can also propel them. Nora Fatehi, who is known for getting off to an energetic dance routine, recently dropped one of the promotional tracks for KD: The Devil. The song gained controversy, at least in part because of what she presented as a performance. Far from its celebration, but more debate based on lyrics and presentation has made it a hot topic on social media.
Sarke Chunar Teri Sarke has been launched to millions in multiple languages and reaches the whole country. Dancing through a scene that has Nora Fatehi and Sanjay Dutt doing it, Nora sets in a traditional ghaghra choli performance. The track was intended to be a glittering highlight, but it rapidly drew condemnation.
Lyrics are the most controversial aspect of this, a frequent source of backlash from viewers who viewed them as vulgar language heavy in double meanings. Complementing assertive choreography, the song was deemed unsuitable for family audiences. Nora’s dance moves were deft but, for a vast swath of the public, deemed too suggestive. Although there was some added star power with the addition of Sanjay Dutt, it only added to the debate fans started asking whether the match worked for them at all.
Reactions have been mixed. Others raved about Nora’s energy and presence onscreen. Her song seemed catchy and entertaining. Others strongly opposed it, saying it crossed a line into bad attitudes and shouldn’t be made into a mainstream song. So far you’ve gone everywhere from social media streams with the kind of praise all this creates, through outraged people that try to leave the song on the shelf.
And the episode reveals the fine line between entertainment and cultural empathy. Bold dance numbers can catch your eye, but come without a problem: if audiences find them too vulgar in their songs, they can potentially be forced to watch them. For a pan-India release such as KD: The Devil that is designed to engage a wider range of viewers, such controversy can be a marketing ploy that might cost the film a few millions more (though, we’ll see, it is not).
Nora Fatehi’s anthem for the KD movie was made a “sparkling buzz” because it wasn’t glamorous, but outrage. The controversy illustrates that nowadays audiences expect a film to make us laugh as well as respect other cultures. Whether the controversy really helps or hurts the film is one that remains to be seen, but it certainly means the song and consequently the film are getting a lot of play.
