AP Dhillon posted a message about spreading ‘love and not hate’ hours after Punjabi-Canadian singer-rapper Shubh (Shubhneet Singh) broke silence following the reaction and the cancellation of his India tour amid the ongoing diplomatic conflict between India and Canada.
A day after Shubh’s Still Rollin India Tour was cancelled due to his apparent sympathy for the Khalistan cause, the Canadian musician resorted to Instagram Stories. The fury towards Shubh was also posted on the late Sidhu Moose Wala’s Instagram page.
AP Dhillon wrote on Instagram Stories on Friday, “I try to stay out of all the social mania as it is clear to me that regardless of what I say or do, it is a lost cause… someone, somewhere is going to spin the narrative to their liking and create more division. As an artist it has become almost impossible to stay focussed on your craft and do what you love. I try to be mindful of everyone’s sentiments but it has gotten to a point where we have to second and triple guess our every move due to fear of unintentionally fuelling even more division.”
The singer, who has been living in Canada since 2015, and recently visited India, further wrote, “Special interest and political groups constantly use our (artists’) public image as a chess piece to further their agenda, while we are just trying to make art that helps people on individual level, regardless of their colour, race, religion, nationality, gender etc.”
AP Dhillon concluded, “Spread love not hate. Let’s start thinking for ourselves and not let hateful influences program our beliefs. We are ALL one. let’s not let man-made social constructs divide us. Division has gotten us to this point but unity is the key to the future…”
Meanwhile, a statement of support for Subhu was shared by late Sidhu Moose Wala’s Instagram page. Part of it read, “Sidhu consistently advocated for his people, only to be unjustly labelled a terrorist without an substantiated evidence. Regrettably, a similar fate has befallen Shubh. A single Instagram Story, posted with benevolent intentions, has unexpectedly ignited a torrent of national animosity. It raises the question of why artists hailing for minority communities seem to consistently face suich adversity, either through persecution or silencing. Music transcends caste and religion. We lost Sidhu due to this prevailing hatred. When will this end?”
On Wednesday, BookMyShow announced that Shubh’s Still Rollin Tour for India had been cancelled.
The ticketing service received flak on social media for hosting the musician, who has been labelled an alleged Khalistani sympathiser following his previous remark. Earlier this year, Shubh allegedly published a distorted map of India on Instagram Stories, along with the caption “Pray for Punjab.” According to reports, Indian cricketer Virat Kohli and others have unfollowed Shubh on Instagram as a result of the reaction.
Shubh expressed disappointment in the cancellation of his India tour in a message made on Instagram on Thursday. He stated that he had been preparing for this tour for the previous two months and was excited to play in India.