The shooting of India’s biggest hip hop star
The Documentary Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 2.7K Ratings
🗓️ 26 July 2025
⏱️ 25 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Sidhu Moose Wala was one of the most famous Punjabi rappers in the world. A devout Sikh, he wore a turban and prided himself on his farming roots. But he also rapped about money, power, criminality and guns. Only hours after his death, a man came forward to claim responsibility for his killing, which left people all over the world wondering: why? Ishleen Kaur has been investigating the killing for season 8 of World of Secrets podcast. It took her into a world of music, and gangsters.
Season 8 of World of Secrets, The Killing Call, is a BBC Eye investigation for the BBC World Service. To hear more episodes, search for World of Secrets wherever you get your BBC podcasts.
This episode of The Documentary comes to you from The Fifth Floor, the show at the heart of global storytelling, with BBC journalists from all around the world.
Presented by Faranak Amidi. Produced by Caroline Ferguson and Alice Gioia. This is an EcoAudio certified production.
(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the documentary from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:07.8 | This is the fifth floor. |
| 0:11.5 | The fifth floor, you knowsson. |
| 0:15.6 | This is the fifth floor at Farnak Amidi Sobath. This is the fifth floor at the heart of global storytelling with BBC journalists from all around the world. |
| 0:29.0 | I'm your host, Faranak Amidhi. |
| 0:35.5 | In 2022, in a small village in Punjab, India, Sidhu Musawala was shot multiple times in killed in broad daylight. |
| 0:46.7 | Sidhu was a rapper, maybe one of the most famous Punjabi rappers in the world. |
| 0:52.2 | A devout Sikh, he wore a turban and took pride in his farming background. |
| 0:58.6 | But he also rapped about money, power, criminality and guns. Only hours after his death, a man came |
| 1:07.0 | forward to claim responsibility for his killing, which left people all over the world |
| 1:12.8 | wondering, why? My colleague Islingar also wanted to find out why, and she's been trying to |
| 1:19.7 | understand why this beloved musician and poet was murdered. Her investigation sheds light on the |
| 1:26.7 | world of Punjabi musicians and gangsters, |
| 1:29.7 | and it's the subject of the new season of World of Secrets podcast. Ishlin joins me right now. |
| 1:36.0 | Ishlim, welcome back to the fifth floor. |
| 1:39.0 | Thanks, Farronach. Thanks so much for having me. |
| 1:41.1 | It's great to have you always. Ishin, you are from Punjab yourself, |
| 1:45.2 | so could you just give us some context of the area? Is it a place with a lot of crime? It's like |
| 1:51.3 | gangster culture, something popular there? Well, I mean, if I started talking about Punjab, |
| 1:57.3 | I think I need a whole episode. But I grew up in Punjab in the 90s. |
| 2:04.1 | You know, it's often said that Punjab's imprint is larger than its footprint, which means |
| 2:09.6 | the idea of Punjab looms far larger than the reality on ground. |
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