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Crowds at Diljit Dosanjh's recent concert in Chandigarh complained about the poor condition of the facilities.
When Amrita Kaur decided to attend Punjabi pop star Diljit Dosanjh's concert in India this month, she was prepared for some discomfort.
Having attended several concerts in the past, Ms Kaur looked forward to the “exhilarating chaos” that accompanies large crowds at major events in India.
But what awaited her was much worse than she had imagined.
Crowd control was minimal and sanitation facilities non-existent. Overloaded mobile networks have stopped working, sparking fears for people's safety. Even going to the bathroom was a gamble, she said, because it meant having to spend the rest of the performance in line outside “unsanitary, smelly stalls.”
The venue, a huge government-owned plot of land in the northern city of Chandigarh, had no public transport or parking space, leaving Ms Kaur with no choice but to drive her drive to a friend's house nearby – and then find yourself stuck in the inevitable, hours-long traffic jam once the concert is over.
“You pay a lot of money for a ticket and what do you get in return? A possible urinary infection and a bad headache accompanied by some music,” she says of her experience.
This year has been a big one for India's booming concert industry, with major tours from Dua Lipa, Dosanjh and Maroon 5 filling stadiums and grounds already delighting audiences. Other international acts like Green Day, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran are expected to perform in the coming months.
In fact, music concerts in India generated around 8 billion rupees ($94.1 million; £75.3 million) in revenue last year – a figure that is expected to increase by 25% by the end of 2025.
Young, affluent Indians are not only willing to pay more to see their favorite music stars, but actively seek out these events. In 2023, more than 400,000 people in India reported traveling to other Indian cities to attend live events.
But despite the enthusiasm, many spectators say their experience is far from ideal. The issue made headlines earlier this week, when a diabetic patient with incontinence issues said he ended up soiling himself at a Bryan Adams concert due to the unavailability of restrooms on site.
The same day, Dosanjh, who was on a national tour, shocked his fans by announcing that he would no longer perform in India until the infrastructure of concert halls improves. The singer later clarified that he was referring to only one of the locations.
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Thousands attended Bryan Adam's recent concerts in India – not everyone had a good experience
Since then, social media has been flooded with similar complaints from spectators. From booking tickets on dodgy scalping websites at surprisingly high prices, to braving hours of traffic before and after a show, often with a full bladder, fans say they have to pay more only money to see their favorite artists.
Those who can afford it are now choosing to attend shows in other countries for a safer and generally more fun experience. “At Adele's concert in Munich, the staff were continuously cleaning the toilets and it was super clean even after three hours of the concert,” says Ishika Goon, a lawyer based in Bangalore. “If I’m going to spend that much money, I might as well go for the full experience.”
Organizers and promoters acknowledge the problems but say they, too, are hampered by broader infrastructural challenges.
This is because India does not have enough venues dedicated to live concerts, forcing them to opt for sub-optimal spaces or simply avoid certain cities, which prevents the industry from growing, says Anmol Kukreja , co-founder of Skillbox, a gig company. entertainment company that has organized more than 300 concerts.
Unlike many Western countries where concert venues are plentiful, he says that in India, events must take place in venues such as shopping malls, sports stadiums or on public grounds – all of which come with their own limitations and many variables.
A mall may have better toilets and designated parking areas, but it will not necessarily be able to accommodate huge crowds like a large barren plot of land located in a remote corner of the city with poor connectivity would.
Nowadays, many music events are held in public stadiums to minimize some inconvenience, but this comes with its own challenges, such as poor sound quality, crowd management issues and lots of red tape.
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Spectators say crowd management is a huge problem at most events
Government-owned venues are better suited to large events, but the booking process can often be a “complex web of permissions and licenses, which makes them less attractive”, says Mr Kukreja.
To fill these gaps, organizers end up spending thousands of dollars to build temporary infrastructure at the venues – the stage, temporary toilets and parking spaces – before each concert, which could lead to heavy losses, adds Tej Brar , founder of Third Culture and the Mumbai-based organization. director of NH7, one of India's largest music festivals.
And it's not just the business world that's suffering, the live music scene is also affected, as a whole segment of smaller, independent artists are left out because they're not “big enough” to making people want to pay an exorbitant price to watch them.
“If they can't attract crowds of 10,000 or more, they generally won't have shows because the economics won't work for the organizers.”
But lately, even major international music festivals with star-studded lineups and multimillion-dollar budgets have disappointed fans.
“Everything is fine but why can’t you have a clean toilet?” asks Sreoshi Mukherjee, a Delhi-based journalist.
Ms Mukherjee, who attends music concerts across the country, was particularly dismayed by the lack of toilets at Lollapalooza and Backstreet Boys, whose tickets cost between 5,000 ($59; £47) and 10,000 ($118 ;£94) rupees.
“There was a time when the toilets lacked toilet paper and water. We had to buy bottles of water to relieve ourselves,” she says.
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Yet more and more young Indians are willing to pay top dollar to watch their favorite artists.
Criticism of inflated ticket prices that turn these events into high-profile cultural experiences reserved for only a few has grown, but there are other accessibility issues as well.
Most venues have few or no facilities for people with disabilities, such as wheelchair access and audio description. At the Dosanjh concert in Chandigarh, Ms Kaur said they had to carry their wheelchair-bound friend into the venue as there was no ramp or access route.
The BBC has contacted the organizers of all events mentioned in the article for comment.
Others in the industry say there can be no one-size-fits-all solution to these problems, but they are concerned about its long-term impact on the business. Right now, people are still willing to pay. But the persistence of poor installations could change their minds.
“Word of mouth plays a crucial role in event attendance, and negative feedback can damage an organizer’s reputation,” says Brar.
But the responsibility for solving this problem, he adds, must be shared. “While the company takes responsibility for choosing the location and setting ticket prices, the venue must offer basic amenities. Adequate sanitation facilities and dedicated cleaning staff should be a standard at the venue.”
As the country prepares to welcome big names like Sheeran and Green Day, fans are hoping for a better experience.
And for some, the huge crowds and risk of possible infection still seem like a small price to see their favorite star.
“The disorder and chaos are exciting,” says student Mohammad Sami.
“It’s like you’re stuck on an island with hundreds of strangers, united by their determination to survive the night.”
