Aug 11, 2026 4:07pm IST
Guru Randhawa’s ‘Fine Shyt’ Is What Happens When Shock Replaces Storytelling
Guru Randhawa’s “Fine Shyt” has been busy taking over your social media feeds with content creators of all ages raising a stink across your timelines with their reaction engines following its release. And it’s probably because the music video has followed the rules of the new game: cringe is unequivocally the latest clickbait. Tony Kakkar routinely indulges in it (last seen in “Lollipop”), in fact. Something the artist touched upon in a recent reel after the release of “Fineshyt,” calling out Guru for using his “genre.” Randhawa, however, called his cringey catchphrase a “silly little slang” and doubled down on the criticism with “Guilty as charged of making songs that repeat in your head forever.”
Don’t believe for a minute that Guru Randhawa doesn’t know what he’s doing, though. Or that he’s unaware in the least. The certified independent Punjabi hitmaker is very much in the driver’s seat when it comes to decision-making regarding his videos, bringing his foot down on the accelerator ever so lightly, testing the limits of his audiences.
Very little changes when it comes to assembling his biggest hits in the past year. His army of stylists, music video directors and lyricist-composers and producers go where he goes and the patterns of familiarity are in plain sight. They have it down to a formula. And the formula works. He is guaranteed virality and free publicity by “not fixing what ain’t broke.”
Guru Randhawa has realised that he needs to take ownership of his “product” from assembly to sale. He’s as much a part of the “writing” process and composing of his songs as he is on the marketing and appearance, storyboarding and perception-tracking of the videos for those singles via the many labels and distribution agencies he works with. The proof is in the pudding and the views are there for all to see.
Let’s break down why a Guru Randhawa song/video lands clicks and ticks off folks without skipping a beat…
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Sticking to the plan, no matter what
The man’s all style and very little substance by design and invariably, by choice. Most music videos of his ilk either lean heavily on easy-to-follow choreography or repetition-heavy lyrics and killer beats. And it’s always either one of the two or both. Where the artist and his team push the envelope is where they’re convinced it pays off the most.
Inappropriate, but it’s working
Now, consider the inappropriacy of the setting of “Azul.” In the video, Guru plays a school photographer who creepily smiles at girls in schoolgirl outfits and shoots lingering stares at them as he guides them to pose for a photograph. He’s supposed to be a grown adult in the video, he clearly isn’t their age. That’s problematic messaging right there, but it’s also his most viewed and streamed single this year.
Move to the rather sexist “Fine Shyt.” You hear the same noises, see similar outfits in location-inappropriate settings and a bystanding, grinning Guru Randhawa as a spectator rubbing his hands gleefully even as frenzied women twerk as they work, for no reason. The cheeky disclaimer at the start, is directed at anyone wanting to harp on the "mistakes" made in "Azul": "All artists in this video are above 18, including me," being the most obvious one.
Inside the system
Just track the videos of the songs he’s done in the past year on YouTube. Dilute that list by only keeping the number of bonafide MV hits he has produced. You come up with “Sirra,” “Qatal” and the notorious “Azul,” which still gets talked about for its minor-baiting music video. Cross-reference the streaming numbers via Spotify and you come with the same three songs. The rest of his releases this year pale in comparison. “Azul” released last August (currently sitting pretty at 346M in one year), “Sirra” last July (at 234M) and “Qatal” in April 2025 (278M).
Now, note how very little changes in the team-building. All the listed releases are via Warner Music. The digital partner is always Bull18. The stylist in three of the four singles is the same: Prabhjyot Kaur. Gulnaaz Khan styles for “Qatal”. Gurjit GiIl co-writes “Fine Shyt” and “Azul” along with Guru while Rony Ajnali and Gill Machhrai do the honors on “Sirra” and “Qatal.” Save for the music video of “Qatal,” which has been directed by Bosco Leslie Martis, the other three are all Harry Singh Preet Singh creations. The choreographer on “Sirra” and “Azul” is Yassh Kadamm, but “Fine Shyt” and “Qatal” has Rinku and Team BLM listed, respectively, in the credits. The only thing that never stays constant is the leading model/dancer.
What’s the lure?
The question arises: Why do women choose to appear in these videos? Skimpily clad so, knowing that troll armies don’t waste time seeking out and doxxing them just because they can? The answer is quite apparent: The payoff, the reach it offers, the eyeballs it gets, the industry it feeds and an engaged audience it perpetuates, is too enticing to let go off. If they don’t take up these projects, somebody else will.
Forget what that tells you about the artist or the makers of these videos, it should tell you a lot about the society we live in and that consumes such content gleefully while making a noise about its perceived incorrectness.
What’s the solution?
Love or loathe Guru, there’s no denying that the man knows what the fans, fence-sitters and haters want and he doesn’t discriminate when he dishes it out. His track, as tone-deaf or inappropriate or sexist as it is, is getting views and is continuously being talked about. There’s nothing you or I can do about it, apart from stop giving him views and reactions. Maybe, that will get him to stop?
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