This was evident during the successful launch of India’s first-ever Lollapalooza festival in January this year, with a lineup comprising both local and international acts, including AP Dhillon, Cigarettes After Sex, Divine, the F16s, Jackson Wang, Imanbek, Greta Van Fleet, The Wombats, and Diplo.
India’s live music industry is thriving, and it’s about time. After years of being snubbed by western pop acts, the country is experiencing a pivotal, post-pandemic boom, with fans flocking in their droves to witness international acts make their India debuts.
In the last two years alone, visits from Post Malone, Imagine Dragons, Rema and even the Backstreet Boys have energised India’s live music scene, with Indian promoters scrambling to stay on top of this sudden increase in demand.
And after the lull brought about by social distancing, Indian music enthusiasts are now experiencing – with renewed vigour – the thrill of jam-packed venues and mosh pits more than ever before.
Further change is still needed. Megastars such as Taylor Swift and Beyonce enjoy a massive following in India, but the country’s Swifties are yet to see the sequinned sparkle of an Eras show, while the Indian Bey Hive is still awaiting the bombastic disco-influenced pop of Beyonce’s Renaissance tour.
“There were so many moments when artists like Post Malone, Travis Scott, Billie Eilish, and Drake released terrific albums followed by tours, but didn’t consider India as a stop, despite their tracks ranking on our local charts,” Shivani Maheshwari, a music fan from Noida, tells The Independent.
Post Malone’s India debut at the Feeding India Concert last year, for instance, saw over 20,000 people attending, while the multi-genre Lollapalooza India event in January saw more than 60,000 people in attendance over two days.
