Playback singer Sonu Nigam has expressed his disappointment at the IIFA Awards 2025 held in Jaipur, Rajasthan. Despite the immense success of his song Dholna 3.0, Sonu Nigam did not get enrollment in the best playback singer (male) category. The nominees included Arijit Singh, Karan Aujla, Diljit Dosanj and Badshah, Zubin Nautiyal and Friends. Jubin Nautiyal eventually won the award.

Sonu Nigam took to Instagram to share his dissatisfaction, posted a screenshot of the nominee list and indicated the absence of his name. He thanked IIFA and indicated on the participation of Rajasthan bureaucracy and wrote, “Thank you IIFA … finally you were accountable to Rajasthan bureaucracy (SIC).” He selected mere dholana 3.0 as a background song, probably pointing to the fact that he should have earned a nomination for at least the special song that was loved by one and all.

His post received support from fans and fellow musicians, many people expressed that his talent shifted the awards. Music composer Amal Malik commented on the post and wrote, “There is a world in which we live …The intellect (They have made it a joke). ,

Here is how the Internet reacted to this:

The dissatisfaction of the singer can also be associated with the previous event Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma left Nigam’s concertWhich he considered derogatory. He urged politicians to avoid participating in the demonstration if they could not live for the whole incident. His appeal followed an incident in the growing Rajasthan incident on 9 December, where several political figures left his performance midway.

Nigam recently demonstrated at Rashtrapati BhavanIt happened right after Singer Gambhir was suffering from back crampsHe also shared videos from a concert, where he performed despite the illness.