K-pop rapper GIANT PINK under fire for using 'Bhagavad Gita' in 'Pink' song

GIANT PINK, winner of Unpretty Rapstar 3, was slammed for using a Hindu religious text, Bhagavad Gita’s lines, in her recent song Pink. The song was released on December 29 last year but went under the radar as the song used the text as faded background music to add more oomph.

Twitter user @DesiKpopper7 brought the song to fellow K-pop stans’ notice a few days ago on February 7. Indian K-pop stans especially expressed their criticism towards the rapper and her agency, SM Entertainment.

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GIANT PINK uses sacred Hindu scripture in song, gets slammed by Indian K-pop stans

GIANT PINK is a hip-hop rapper under SM Entertainment’s group AIKM (All I Know Music) and the winner of rap competition Unpretty Rapstar season 3. The 30-year-old rapper recently came under fire for using religious scripture as part of her song Pink.

The scripture can be heard in the music video at the time stamp from 1:12 to 1:19. During the few seconds, the beat drops, and a line from the scripture is used, while words like “Krishna” and “Duryodhan” can be clearly heard.

In the Hindu religion, Krishna is a deity, and Duryodhan is a crown prince and one of the antagonists in one of the most revered religious epics, Mahabharata. Bhagavad Gita, too, is a part of the epic and is used as the most basic introduction to Hinduism, as it lays the foundation of the religion.

GIANT PINK's use of Bhagavad Gita in a song has riled up Indian fans, especially because issues of Indian cultural appropriation by K-pop have been called out multiple times in recent years. The fans voiced their frustration and said they are getting “tired” of Korean musicians and artists not learning about different cultures and continuing to use them for aesthetics.

Indian K-pop fans tagged SM Entertainment and demanded the company and its artist apologize for using sacred scripture for aesthetics in the song. Along with an apology, they want the team and the artist to understand the importance of using cultures and to educate themselves.

Neither GIANT PINK nor SM Entertainment has released any official statement regarding the matter.

Meanwhile, a few past instances include BLACKPINK using Hindu deity Lord Ganesha’s statue as a prop and NATURE recently apologizing after being accused of appropriating South Asian, Native American, and African cultures.