2 in custody for throwing water bottle at singer Kailash Kher in Hampi Utsav

The duo claimed to have thrown a water bottle at Kailash Kher because they wanted him to sing Kannada songs

Multi-lingual playback singer and composer Kailash Kher had to face an awkward situation when he went on stage at Hampi Utsav for a live performance as two youths from the emotionally-charged audience threw a water bottle at him demanding he sing Kannada songs. Police managed to take the duo into custody.

As Mr. Kher emerged on the main stage near Gayatri Peetha in Hampi around 1.30 a.m. on January 29-30 for a live performance, cheers, applause and whistles from the audience reverberated in the sky. Waving hands at the fans, before starting the performance, he assured the audience that he would sing songs in Kannada, Hindi and Telugu.

However, somebody from the audience threw a water bottle when he was singing a Hindi song. The bottle landed a few metres away from the singer. The police immediately got into the crowd and managed to get hold of the culprits. The youths were taken to Hampi police station where they were identified as Saddam and Krishnappa.

Mr. Kher continued the performance and entertained the audience till 2.30 a.m.  

On being questioned, the youth said that they threw the bottle as a token of protest as Mr. Kher did not sing Kannada songs despite repeated requests from the crowd, and added that they enjoyed his performance after he began singing Kannada songs.

“Following a complaint from Kannada and Culture Department, an First Information Report (FIR) was filed against the duo for creating public nuisance,” Superintendent of Police Shrihari Babu B.L. told The Hindu.

Mr. Kher’s performance was part of a colourful cultural event organised every evening for three days during the Hampi Utsav 2023, at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hampi in Vijayanagara district of Karnataka. The annual celebration was inaugurated by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on January 27.