Dhvani Bhanushali opens up on facing auto-tune allegations after viral moment with Farah Khan: ‘She said sorry’

Dhvani Bhanushali faced criticism after viral video showed Farah Khan stopping her performance mid-way. In an interview, she clarified the situation.

Singer Dhvani Bhanushali, known for delivering several chart-topping hits like Dilbar, Vaaste and more, faced heavy criticism in 2022 when a viral video showed filmmaker Farah Khan stopping her performance mid-way. Following the incident, many accused Dhvani of relying on auto-tune. In a recent interview with Hauterrfly, the singer addressed the controversy, clarified the truth behind the viral clip, and revealed that Farah later apologised to her for the misunderstanding.

Dhvani Bhanushali reveals truth behind the viral moment with Farah Khan.

Speaking about how she deals with trolls who accuse her of using auto-tune, Dhvani said that such negativity only boosts her visibility. She also mentioned that she enjoys interacting with Farah Khan despite the incident.

Dhvani reveals the truth behind the viral IIFA video

Recalling the viral IIFA moment, Dhvani said, “So, the whole thing happened when I was insanely sick. I was four Dolos down (fever tablets). I don’t know why I even sang that day, aur itna kharab toh tha bhi nahi (and it wasn’t even that bad). Kisi gadhe ne uspe auto-tune daal diya kuch galat (some fool added wrong auto-tune to it). It’s modified at a lot of places — they purposely made it worse. I’m not saying it was my best performance, but I was sick, it was my low moment, and people were selling it. They uploaded it and laughed at me, and I thought, haan theek hai yaar, at least tu mere naam pe apne aap ko bech raha hai (fine, at least you’re selling yourself using my name).”

Farah Khan later apologised to Dhvani

Dhvani further added, “Cut to that whole episode, Farah ma’am came to me and said, ‘Beta, I’m sorry.’ I didn’t even know what had happened. But I think she figured out that people would pick it up and troll me. I said, ‘Okay ma’am, aap humare saath party karne aayengi raat ko?’ (will you come party with us tonight?) and she said yes. Then this whole fiasco happened, but I never blamed her for it. It wasn’t her fault, nor was it mine. Later, I met her again, she came home, and I asked her if she’d make a video with me, and she kindly did.”

The video in question showed Dhvani singing her hit, Vaaste on stage. However, Farah stopped her performance mid-way and Dhvani said, “Okay, chup hojaati hun (I'll keep quiet now). Farah later took the mic and commented, ”none of them used auto-tune." Internet users picked up Farah's comment and trolled Dhvani for her vocals, accusing her of using auto-tune in her songs.

Farah Khan stopping Dhvani Bhanushali from singing
by inBollyBlindsNGossip

About Dhvani Bhanushali

Dhvani made her Bollywood playback debut with the song Ishtehaar from Welcome To New York and went on to deliver hits such as Veere from Veere Di Wedding and Dilbar from Satyameva Jayate. Her breakout single Vaaste (2019) made her the youngest and fastest Indian pop star to cross 1 billion views on YouTube.

Following its success, she lent her voice to popular songs like Duniya (Luka Chuppi), Mukhda Vekh Ke (De De Pyaar De), Psycho Saiyaan (Saaho), and many more.

In 2024, Dhvani made her acting debut with the film Kahan Shuru Kahan Khatam, written by Laxman Utekar and directed by Saurabh Dasgupta, alongside Aashim Gulati. The film, however, received mixed reviews and underperformed at the box office.