Live and longing in Delhi

International artistes have always given Delhi a miss. But now things could be changing for the better.

For years now, citizens of Delhi and the National Capital Region have been envious of those living in Mumbai and Bangalore. It’s not that the capital lacks roads, infrastructure and other amenities, but when it comes to live concerts by A-list international artists, Delhi has, for some reason, been overlooked in favour of the other two cities. So if Mumbaikars saw Roger Waters, Steven Tyler and Mark Knopfler in the past few years, Delhi had to settle for the likes of Vengaboyz and Shaggy. But now it seems like luck is finally smiling on the city. Even if the Bryan Adams show had to be cancelled at the last minute, international hip hop artist Akon performed in the city yesterday and many more are expected to come in this year.

According to Sujit Jain, MD, Netsurf Networks, the company that got Bryan Adams and Akon to the country, “There are just too many unnecessary hurdles and bureaucracy involved in Delhi compared to other cities.” He is speaking from experience. Earlier in February this year, Jain’s company organised four concerts of Bryan Adams in Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Delhi. The first three concerts went off smoothly but the one in Delhi was cancelled at the last minute as Delhi police didn’t give a no-objection certificate.

Jain feels the wrangle could have been avoided, but doesn't want to dwell on the past. “We hosted Akon in Gurgaon as there are less hassles and people of Delhi could be a part of the show as well,” he says. He is, however, disappointed at the problems in hosting shows in Delhi. “If you look at it, Delhi has far better venues than, say, Mumbai or Bangaore. The exhibition grounds at the National Small Industries Corporation in Okhla are ideal. But there’s not only lots of red tape but the entertainment tax in the city is also very high,” he says.

Of course, Delhi has seen a few international star performers in the past. Adams came in 2004, Sting came in 2005 and there have been a few others as well. But the Led Zeppelins, Aerosmiths, Iron Maidens of the world always skip Delhi. Are hassles of organising the only hurdle? “There’s a perception that Delhi is not a rock-loving city, whereas Mumbai and Bangalore are,” says Subir Malik, manager and keyboard player of Parikrama. But that’s just a perception, he adds. “You will find tickets hard to find if big names come to Delhi,” he says. Even Jain agrees with that and says there is a huge audience for all genres of music in Delhi.

Earlier, organisers used to complain about having to give away too many free tickets in Delhi. That’s not an issue anymore as the majority of tickets are sold online or through retail outlets. “These are minor issues which crop up in every city,” says Jain.

Jain is getting more artistes to the country this year. He doesn’t reveal dates but here are some of the big international names we can expect — “Coldplay, Shakira, Linkin Park… and hopefully many more.” Whether they include Delhi in their itinerary remains to be seen.