It’s a rare sight. Anupam Kher, the man who usually keeps his head down and his jokes dry, has stepped into the fray. And he’s not mincing words. The Khosla Ka Ghosla star watched the viral video of Subodh Uniyal, a BJP minister and MLA, storming the stage at the Kunjapuri Mela in Narendra Nagar to tell Daler Mehndi to stop singing. Uniyal accused the singer of being drunk. Kher’s reaction? He called it an insult. And not the kind that makes for good comedy. The kind that stings.
The veteran actor didn’t just say Daler was sober. He dropped a detail that reframes the whole incident. Kher claims Daler has been unwell for two to three years. That’s not a vague 'sick' or 'not feeling well.' That is a prolonged health battle. Whether Daler lip-synced some numbers to manage the physical toll is a debate for later. But Kher’s point is sharper: the minister should have handled it privately. 'It’s his professionalism that he stuck with his commitment,' Kher noted, pointing out that Daler likely couldn't back out of the event due to prior commitments.
Let’s be clear about the optics here. A government minister, on a public stage, during a cultural programme, telling a 35-year veteran of the industry to shut up because he looks a little off. It’s a power move, plain and simple. Kher sees it that way. He questioned if it was necessary to 'insult' Daler publicly, adding that respect is not a one-way entitlement. He praised Daler’s contribution to music—35 years of making people happy—and argued that his hard-earned respect deserved better than a public dressing-down.
Kher isn’t doing this alone, though. Mika Singh, who is actually Daler’s brother, was already in the ring. Kapil Sharma has also weighed in. But Kher is pushing for a broader front. He told the industry that it’s not just Mika’s job to defend his sibling. 'We should all talk and take a stand for people that we know,' he urged. It’s a call for solidarity in an industry that often watches the drama unfold from the safety of their living rooms.
So where does this leave us? The video is out. The minister’s face is red. Daler’s health is now a public conversation point. And Anupam Kher has added his name to the list of those who think the handling was, at best, tone-deaf and at worst, bullying. The internet is already on Daler’s side, but Kher’s specific claim about the long-term illness adds a layer of human sympathy that raw outrage can’t touch.