The multi-genre artist’s bold sound and confrontation of Indian social problems are winning him a growing audience – and a surprise new collaborator in US
Rapper Lil B
In 2000, pregnant 19-year-old Harpreet Kaur was found dead in mysterious circumstances. Her mother, the then chief of the committee that manages Sikh places of worship across
India, cited severe food poisoning as the cause. The truth was much more sinister. Kaur was murdered following her secret marriage to 21-year-old Kamaljeet Singh – a lower-caste man – against the wishes of her mother.
Although India’s caste system is a centuries-old form of social hierarchy, incidents like this remain an ugly reality in modern-day south Asia, with caste-based “honour” killings, discrimination and violence all prevalent. The brutal beating of labourer and activist Bant Singh in 2006 is another notable example: the ambush was a punishment for having sought justice against some upper-caste men for the gang-rape of his daughter. Singh lost both arms and a leg in the attack.