New Tehri: The cultural evening at the Siddhpeeth Maa Kunjapuri Tourism and Development Fair took an unexpected turn on Sunday night when Uttarakhand cabinet minister Subodh Uniyal interrupted Daler Mehndi on stage. The minister has now told ANI that the singer was offered ₹35 lakh for the appearance, which is why he took objection to what he saw.
What the minister said
According to Uniyal, Daler Mehndi looked unsteady, could barely stand, and was not singing live. “He seemed disoriented on stage and didn’t seem to be able to even keep standing. Besides this, he was only lip-syncing to his songs,” the minister said. He added that he told the singer he is a big artist and should do justice to his art, especially after being offered ₹35 lakh to come and perform.
In a clip circulating online, Uniyal can be heard saying, “You cannot even speak, so how are you going to sing?” He also tells the singer that the audience had come to be entertained and that he was making a fool of them. The minister underlined the need for decorum because the event was being held during the religious period of Navratri.
Why the moment is travelling
The video has given a local tourism fair a much larger audience. The disclosed fee turns a stage confrontation into a sharper question: when a state event pays a celebrity a substantial amount, what is the audience entitled to expect? The optics matter even more because taxpayers and attendees can now attach a number to the performance.
Key details so far:
- Event: Siddhpeeth Maa Kunjapuri Tourism and Development Fair, New Tehri, Sunday night
- Fee: ₹35 lakh, as disclosed by minister Subodh Uniyal
- Complaints: appearing disoriented, unsteady on stage, lip-syncing
- Timing: Navratri, with the minister asking for decorum
Daler Mehndi’s legacy, and the expectation that follows
Daler Mehndi is one of India’s best-known Punjabi pop voices, with 1990s hits such as Bolo Ta Ra Ra, Dardi Rab Rab and Ho Jayegi Balle Balle, along with film songs like Mrityudata’s Na Na Na Re and Rang De Basanti’s Paathshaala. That legacy is part of why the minister’s complaint carried weight: he argued that a big name must be able to match the promise it brings.
Alcohol-related claims have been made around the incident, but the report notes these cannot be independently confirmed. Daler Mehndi has not responded publicly in this report.
What it signals for live shows
The incident is a reminder for event hosts that a famous name and a high fee do not automatically deliver a smooth live appearance. Health, travel, sound, and format all matter, and a stage audit can collapse if the artist is not in a condition to perform. The minister made the fee public, which means the production budget has become part of the celebrity story, not just the audience’s memory.
For fans and state organisers, the lingering question is whether a paid festival performance should mean singing live. The answer may vary by format, but after a viral clip like this, the bar for paid cultural evenings is likely to be higher for some time.
Source: Hindustan Times
Comments