Abhijeet Bhattacharya Reveals What He Told Udit Narayan After His Viral Kiss Row: 'What’s The Big Deal?'

Playback singer Udit Narayan found himself at the centre of a massive controversy last year after videos of him kissing female fans went viral. He was hugely trolled on social media, with many calling him out. Looking back at the incident, Abhijeet Bhattacharya recently said in an interview that he publicly defended the singer despite the criticism. He added that he had also stood by Sonu Nigam during the row over his 2017 azaan comments.

While speaking to Subhojit Ghosh on his YouTube channel, Abhijeet Bhattacharya revealed that he advised Udit Narayan against denying the incident that drew widespread criticism last year. Instead, he told the singer to accept what had happened and move forward. He said, “I stood by Udit even after he had given

up. I told him, ‘Just say yes, I kissed because someone kissed me. Say it openly—that yes, I’ll do it too. If my fans come and kiss or hug me, I’ll do that too.’ I even spoke in his support. I told him, ‘You’re Udit Narayan. If people won’t kiss you, then who will they kiss? If 50 people kiss you and you kiss one of them back, what’s the big deal? Just say, ‘Yes, I did.'”

It all started after Udit’s video from one of his live concerts went viral on social media. It showed him kissing female fans who had approached him for selfies. As the clips spread rapidly across social media, the singer faced widespread criticism. Addressing the backlash at the time, Udit defended himself by saying the gestures were spontaneous moments of affection shared between an artiste and admirers, insisting there was no ill intent behind them.

In the same interview, Abhijeet, who is known for his honest takes and unfiltered opinions, recalled how he stood by Sonu Nigam too in his tough times. In 2017, Sonu made controversial remarks on the use of loudspeakers for the azaan. Speaking about the same, the senior playback singer said, “I had strongly supported Sonu. When that maulvi from Kolkata said he would shave Sonu’s head, I defended him during a live TV debate. Even Sonu never expected that I would stand up for him like that. People close to him had started speaking against him, but I was the only one standing by his side.”

Abhijeet also spoke about his friendships in the industry. He said that he has always stood by those he considers friends, even if the support has often been one-sided. He remarked that while he has consistently spoken up for others during difficult times, very few have done the same for him.