Punjab Kings (PBKS) pacer Arshdeep Singh found himself embroiled in a controversy following a viral Snapchat video with Mumbai Indians (MI) batter Tilak Varma during the IPL 2026 season.

The video captured Arshdeep engaging in what he likely intended as playful banter, but which many social media users criticized as having inappropriate, racially insensitive undertones.

In the clip, Arshdeep addressed Tilak as “oye andhere” (meaning "hey darkness" or "hey dark one"). Following the initial remark, the left-arm quick continued the joke by asking Tilak if he had applied sunscreen.

Arshdeep then pointed the camera towards Tilak’s teammate and fellow Punjabi, Naman Dhir, referring to him as the “real noor” (meaning "light" or "glow").

While Tilak Varma initially ignored the comment and later laughed it off, the video quickly garnered negative attention on social media, with netizens labelling Arshdeep’s remarks as "racist".

Nearly a month later, Prabhsimran Singh, Arshdeep’s teammate at PBKS, offered a fresh insight into the incident.

"They (Arshdeep Singh and Tilak Varma) are really good friends. They can do anything between each other. It also depends on us as to how we take personal things. The two have played so much cricket together, so people should leave the matter to them," said Prabhsimran in an interaction with InsideSport.

"No (Arshdeep wasn't affected). It's a good thing about his character that he remains the same way in both highs and lows. Everyone knows how hard-working he is. Now, it'll be wrong if you judge his cricket performances because of his personal life incidents," he added.

After the episode, Arshdeep drastically overhauled his social media, deleting over 200 Instagram posts. He has noticeably reduced his casual vlog-style uploads and behind-the-scenes content as well.

Arshdeep Singh is currently featuring in the ODI series against Afghanistan at home. He returned with figures of 2 for 27 in the opening game in Dharamsala on June 13.