Ahmedabad: India seems to be having quite a musical moment. With international artistes lining up to play here, youngsters are, in turn, queuing up to buy tickets to their concerts. Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Dua Lipa, Green Day, Shawn Mendes, Glass Animals, GOT7&rsquo;s Bam Bam, EXO&rsquo;s Chen &amp; Xiumin, B.I, are some of the musical artistes set to perform in India soon. &nbsp;
As British band Coldplay prepares to enthrall Indian audiences with their tunes in January next year, booking tickets for the two planned concerts (January 18 &amp; 19) were akin to climbing the Mount Everest for some.
After tickets went online on September 22, many people were left out in the cold as they failed to secure them. With the band choosing to make the concert affordable for as many economic sections as possible, the tickets were reasonably priced between Rs2,500 to Rs35,000. However, sales were marred by a long wait on BookMyShow, the official ticketing partner for the concert.
Due to high demand and craze to attend the concert, Coldplay added another show on January 21 to the India leg of its &lsquo;Music of the Spheres&rsquo; tour.
Known for our jugaadu values, many Indian youngsters tried to buy tickets from different platforms selling them at inflated prices, to no avail. Those who did succeed in buying tickets, paid outrageous amounts of money, some in lakhs, to secure a ticket.
The frenzy over getting to attend a concert showcases a need for approval that seems to rule the heads of youngsters of today. With the pressure to supposedly &lsquo;fit in&rsquo; mounts due to social media, people have taken to spending their money on the latest &lsquo;in&rsquo; thing.
Craze to attend meant people logged in from multiple devices to better their chances of grabbing a ticket or two. Many even did so in groups to ride on their friends, family, acquaintances&rsquo; ability to secure tickets. &nbsp;
Many netizens took to social media platforms and lamented over failing to secure tickets to the Coldplay concert despite being &lsquo;true fans&rsquo;. With the Coldplay concert being considered a &lsquo;hot ticket&rsquo;, demand for tickets has not stayed limited to people who wish to see their favourite band live. People with no knowledge of the band or its music make up a majority of concertgoers who wish to attend the concert only because of its novelty.
A similar &lsquo;trend&rsquo; happened when American popstar Justin Bieber came to India for a concert in 2017. While many attended the Mumbai concert, most people complained of pricey tickets and lack of proper arrangements by organizers.
Driven by herd mentality, youngsters are leaving no stone unturned to land the privilege of going to mega events. Clicking and posting pictures and videos at such soirees has become the norm for them. They do so with gusto, for fear of missing out and potentially being judged by their peers, for not doing.
Presale of concert tickets for Indian singer Diljit Dosanjh&rsquo;s Dil-Luminati tour began earlier this month, but were sold out in a matter of minutes. This prompted the musician to add two more shows to the India leg of his world tour.
Many who managed to snag extra tickets advertised them on social media platforms prompting interest from those who failed to buy them. According to reports, bidding wars also sprung up online with one Dil-Luminati ticket even going for as much as Rs1.5 lakh.
High prices of tickets doesn&rsquo;t seem to be deterrent for concert goers looking to have a good time. The passes for the upcoming Lollapalooza India 2025 have been divided into four categories: General admission, Lolla Comfort, Lolla VIP and Lolla Platinum. Starting from Rs6,999, the cost of two-day festival passes may go upto Rs49,999. A one-day pass may cost anywhere between Rs6,999 to Rs13,999.
Allan Christian, an advertising specialist, said, &ldquo;One of the most relaxing concerts I ever attended was on 26th January, 2015, when Sivamani Trio with percussionist Sivamani, sitarist Ravi Chary and keyboardist Harmeet Manseta performed at 7 am in Vadodara. We were only 200 people in the audience and it was a surreal moment. I also attended the AR Rahman concert later that same evening, which was a dream come true.&rdquo;
A far cry from concerts in the 1990s and even early 2000s, the scale of such events has become more complex with high production value. When pop legend Michael Jackson came to perform in Mumbai, back in 1996, he left 35,000 fans at the concert asking for more. His only performance for his Indian fans, the concert lives on as a fond memory for those who got the chance to see the King of Pop live in action.
However, ticket prices for the Jackson concert was a whopping Rs5,000 per person, a big ask from Indian concertgoers at the time. If inflation is taken into consideration, the ticket cost today would by between Rs14,299 and Rs16,168.
India, which seems to have finally captured the attention of international artistes, now boosts of a steady flow of talented musicians coming to perform here. As we prepare to welcome an amazing roster of accomplished musicians to our shores, concertgoers can look forward to having a gala time.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Long queues and black market sales of tickets rule roost for mega gigs; (in pic) Coldplay

Despite high prices & difficulty in securing tickets, youngsters determined to enjoy upcoming concerts

Concert mania: True love for music or trend following?

Despite high prices & difficulty in securing tickets, youngsters determined to enjoy upcoming concerts

September 23, 2024 | 17:28 IST