Last year, over 2 lakh people attended Coldplay’s Ahmedabad show.

It generated more than Rs 641 crore as revenue, according to a BookMyShow report.

This year, even more global stars are coming to India. There’s Shakira, Kanye West and Calvin Harris.

In short, India’s concert economy is booming.

Estimates peg the live events organised market as between Rs 12,000 and Rs 20,000 crore.

Still, we don’t really have the infrastructure to support shows of this scale.

Fewer than ten venues across the country can host more than 10,000 people.

Fans often complain of issues with traffic control, crowd management, toilets and parking.

So what’s going on here?

In the latest episode of The Signal Brief, we hear from consumers and industry professionals on what’s behind this growing concert economy—and where it’s falling short.

The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite podcasts.

NOTE: A machine transcribed this episode. A human has looked at this text but there might still be errors. Please refer to the audio above, if you need to clarify something. If you want to give us feedback, please write to us at feedback@thecore.in.

TRANSCRIPT:

Kudrat (Host): Kaushani is 37, she works at an environmental non-profit, and has been a lifelong Backstreet Boys fan.

Kaushani:   I started listening to Backstreet Boys when I was, I think probably like eight or 10 years old, and those are your core memories. I, like, there was no internet then, so I've found their lyrics on their cassettes, memorised the lyrics and all of that.

Kudrat (Host): So imagine Kaushani’s joy when the band announced their India tour in 2023—their first in over a decade.

She grabbed tickets with her friends, all longtime fans, buzzing with that rare, giddy nostalgia.

The countdown felt electric: outfits planned, playlists on repeat, the promise of singing along to every hit live.

Then, just days before the Delhi show, BookMyShow announced a last-minute venue change—from the central Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi to Airia Mall, way out in Gurugram.

Kaushani:  They changed the venue last minute from the heart of the city to the outskirts of Gurgaon. So we really, especially women who mostly go for these concerts, have to figure out transport.

Kudrat (Host): Some of them you have to cancel because if you don't find a companion to go with you, you are stuck there, you know, all alone trying to get back. And it's not really safe sometimes, right?

Kaushani still went. And says the performance itself was great.

But the experience around it? Not so much.

India’s live events scene is growing quickly.

Industry estimates vary, but the organised market is now somewhere between Rs 12,000 crore and Rs 20,000 crore.

Last year alone, over 34,000 live events took place in the country.

Large concerts now attract massive crowds.

Coldplay’s shows in Ahmedabad drew more than two lakh fans and generated an estimated Rs 641 crore in economic impact. Hotels filled up and local businesses saw a surge in demand.

Kudrat (Host): And 2026 looks even bigger: Ye (Kanye West) is debuting in Delhi this March, Shakira returning for shows in April, Calvin Harris is touring multiple cities.

Global stars are finally choosing India.

But here's the reality check: Most venues are repurposed stadiums or open grounds, not designed for massive crowds.

Fewer than ten spots nationwide can reliably handle over 10,000 people, and basics like parking, toilets, crowd flow, and traffic control can fall short.

Fans often complain after big shows, they talk of long waits, chaos, and safety concerns.

Stories like Kaushani's aren't isolated; they're part of a pattern.

Kudrat (Host): My name is Kudrat Wadhwa and you’re listening to The Signal Brief. We don’t do hot takes. Instead we bring you deep dives into the how and why of consumer trends.

In today’s episode, we deep dive into India’s growing concert economy.

The country is hosting more global concerts than ever before. But do we actually have the infrastructure to support this boom without turning magic into mayhem?

Kudrat (Host): To understand why this concert explosion feels so sudden—and why the infra gaps sting—let's step back quick.

International acts in India started small and rare. The Beatles visited in the late '60s mostly for meditation, not big shows. Led Zeppelin jammed low-key in Mumbai in '72. Then came one-offs: Michael Jackson in Mumbai '96, Yanni at the Taj, same year—huge moments, but isolated.

Kudrat (Host): But since COVID ended, the concert economy has exploded. India's live entertainment sector grew 17% in 2025 alone, according to BookMyShow's Throwback 2025 report.

From the consumer side, experts point to one big driver: Gen Z.

An EY-Parthenon and BookMyShow joint study on India’s rising concert economy shows 70% of attendees fall under 35, many under 30.

Young people choosing experiences over possessions.

An Airbnb survey from early 2026 shows 62% of India’s Gen Z plan to travel for concerts or festivals this year.

They turn a show into a full trip.

Many spend 21-40% of their monthly income on it, cutting back elsewhere.

For them, live music means social currency and life-long memories.

From the artists' perspective, India is a massive, untapped English-speaking market with genuine fandom.

I spoke to Ananay Jain, Partner at Grant Thornton Bharat, who works closely with the live events space.

Ananay Jain: I mean, I've spoken to some of these artists and their event management companies, and they've categorically said that the response that they've received outweighs the response that they get in their home country sometimes.

Kudrat (Host): Indian consumers want to attend concerts. Artists, both foreign and local, want to perform.

They’re even charging hefty prices: early bird tickets for a recent John Mayer concert held at the Mahalaxmi stadium in Mumbai started at 6,000 rupees.

Kaushani attended that show as well.

She planned to travel from Delhi to Mumbai just to see him perform. She booked flights and hotels in advance.

Then the organisers announced a last minute schedule change.

Kaushani:  It was really on short notice. And flight tickets in India are always skyrocketing.

So getting a ticket that fast was, yeah, the change in flight fare was a big cost that I had to bear, but I really wanted to see John Mayer. So I took that hit.

The hotel tickets that I had got initially were non-refundable because I was sure I wanted to go. So the hotel also did not agree to pay back because they don't really care about that.

Then, of course, getting to the city and just getting to the venue, and then getting out of the venue. The venue, as you know, was right in the middle of the city, and just getting out of there was a big hassle.

So yeah, I think I would've spent at least more on stay and flight fares than on the ticket itself, just because I wanted to see John Mayer.

Kudrat (Host): When tickets went on sale through BookMyShow, third-party resellers and bots grabbed large blocks quickly.

Genuine fans struggled to book at face value. Many ended up paying double or more on unauthorized resale sites.

Prices doubled overnight: Rs 6,000 tickets sold for Rs 12,000 or higher, with some categories going even steeper.

This left outstation attendees like Kaushani facing extra pressure: overpay or risk missing the show entirely.

In the end, Kaushani ended up paying 50,000 rupees in total.

She says she enjoyed the music.

But the overall experience left her exhausted.

Kaushani: It was just really chaotic. But I can tell you, when the concert got over on Wednesday night, and Thursday morning when I took a flight, it was like a sigh of relief. Like this ordeal was over.

I might have enjoyed the music for that one hour or one and a half hours, but when it was over, it was just like, thank God this is done.

Kudrat (Host): People in the industry are aware of these shortcomings.

I spoke to Samit Garg. He co-founded E Factor Experiences, a company that organises live events. He also serves as President of the Event and Entertainment Management Association.

Samit Garg:  Anything that you start afresh obviously faces many problems in the initial stages. So this is the case with us as well here.

I think the primary issues or the main challenges that the industry faces is the challenge of infrastructure. There are not very many venues available to accommodate and help enable concerts which involve 10,000 to 50,000 people.

Very limited venues are there, and even if venues exist, the knowhow and upkeep of the venues becomes a challenge.

Public transportation then becomes the second challenge. While India is developing, if you compare it with other parts of the world, we're still far behind.

And the reality is that most people in India do have their own transportation, but when it comes to events of this stature, parking areas are normally far, and people don’t want to get into the rigmarole of drinking and driving when they're returning.

So these are also problems that the industry is fighting to overcome.

The other challenge that the industry faces in the current scenario is that of multiple licensing. There are different kinds of permissions required and different formats of music licenses required to organise an event of this nature, which is a nightmare.

Kudrat (Host): Then there’s regulation.

I spoke to Rafael Pereira, an IP strategist and managing partner at TINNUTS, a law firm that advises promoters, artists, and events in India's live entertainment space.

He pointed to the lack of clear regulation as a core barrier that complicates everything from permissions to scaling safely.

Rafael Pereira: In terms of regulation, there isn't specific regulation on health and safety standards for live events from the government.

At this point, there has been an effort by different state governments to create a policy, but that policy has maybe been followed up with guidelines, but not really protocols and rules that need to be followed on the ground.

In fact, this becomes a hurdle for a lot of promoters today.

For example, the biggest hurdle is excise and getting a license or permit to serve alcohol at events.

All promoters would say that they would welcome a lot more health and safety regulation in this space.

The biggest ones do adhere to their own standards of health and safety. If you look at festivals like Rolling Loud and Lollapalooza, they are producing these festivals at a standard that's above best practice at this point.

They are trying to hold themselves to a higher standard of what is internationally acceptable, focusing on making it an all-round good, safe and comfortable experience.

So things like free water, making sure there’s vehicular lockdown during egress when the concert ends, ensuring there are no cars getting in people’s way, and proper crowd management and control.

I think those are the best practices that everyone else should follow.

At the same time, there are enough incidents of LED walls not being rigged properly or supported properly, stages not having the right balance and counterweight, and things like that.

And I think that will only come in with regulation that is focused on the sector.

I would encourage both central and state governments to come together to focus on the sector, not just as a concert economy, but really on what can be done to protect consumers and ensure there are no experiences that tarnish the growth of this economy.

Kudrat (Host): All of this adds to costs, for promoters, and consequently, for consumers.

International artists charge hefty fees too; it costs a lot to put on a good show, as Samit told me.

All of this gets passed on through ticket prices.

Kudrat (Host): But, Samit believes the market will eventually stabilise.

Samit Garg: I think we are in a stage where everything is in a mode of influx, and the market will require some correction.

If you put yourself in the shoes of the consumer, everybody has a budget. You have a pocket. You don’t borrow money to buy a ticket for a concert.

So let’s say you’ve allocated Rs 20,000 a month, or even Rs 10,000 a month, for these kinds of experiences. If there is oversupply, that becomes a challenge.

I think the next 6 to 24 months will be that phase for India, where we will see an oversupply of such events.

The number of tickets sold per event will likely reduce, and that will lead to a phase of market correction.

So the next 6 to 24 months is really that period of correction.

Kudrat (Host): India’s concert economy is in an in-between phase.

Fans are willing to spend. Global artists want to perform here.

But building the infrastructure to support these events will take time.

Until then, the country may continue to experience both the thrill and the chaos of the concert boom.

In the meantime, consumers like Kaushani say they will be much more selective with what events they attend.

Kaushani:  So I'll definitely not look at concerts which are no longer in Delhi, since I'm based out of Delhi.

If they are based anywhere else in India, that would be the first point of filtering.

Definitely the artist makes a big difference, but I also look at who’s organising it, the venue, and the timings. The timings make a big difference to me.

Because it gets really late, and coming back home so late becomes problematic.

Kudrat (Host): That's all for today. You just heard The Signal Brief. We don't do hot takes. Instead, we bring you deep dives into the how and why of consumer trends. The Core produces The Signal Brief. Follow us wherever you get your favourite podcasts.

To check out the rest of our work, go to www.thecore.in.

If you have feedback, we'd love to hear from you. Write to us at feedback@thecore.in or you can write to me personally at kudrat@thecore.in.

Thank you for listening.