Shilpa Rao's set cut short at Mumbai's Bollywood Music Project, organisers apologise
The singer's microphone was switched off mid-performance on Saturday, drawing an apology from organisers and condemnation from a cine workers' body.
Singer Shilpa Rao's performance at the Bollywood Music Project (BMP) in Mumbai ended abruptly on Saturday when her microphone was switched off before she had finished her set, the Hindustan Times reported. The festival was holding its 10th-anniversary edition.
Rao, a National Award winner, wrote on Instagram: "Mumbai, a little piece of my heart broke tonight." She said the audience kept cheering after the music stopped. She called the moment "unfinished" and promised to return to the city.
The BMP team has apologised to her on Instagram, blaming delays from earlier sets and venue curfew rules. "Because our festivals operate under strict local authority guidelines and venue curfew regulations, these compounding delays unfortunately forced a premature end to her set," the statement said.
Sources quoted by the Hindustan Times gave a different account. They alleged the event was mismanaged and that Rao went on nearly two hours late because earlier performers ran 15 to 30 minutes over their slots without being stopped. One source alleged Rao had gone no more than 10 minutes over when her microphone was first cut, while she was singing Chuttamalle from Devara: Part 1.
Another source named Hariharan, Palash Sen of Euphoria and Himesh Reshammiya as singers who allegedly overran. According to that source, Hariharan's manager was asked to give him a cue, but Rao had no warning before "her mic was cut, lights were shut down".
The sources also alleged that BMP's main organiser, Deepak Choudhary, told his team to cut the microphone and lights even though some staff objected.
A separate dispute involves singer Kutle Khan, who began performing on another stage while Rao was still speaking to her audience. Khan's manager, Sharad Sharma, told News18 that Rao interrupted Khan after finishing her own set, the Hindustan Times reported. Sharma said the festival had given artists 15 to 20 minutes each but Khan got only 10, and that Rao's return to address the crowd led Khan to stop.
On Sunday the All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA) condemned "the humiliation the Bollywood Music Project inflicted" on Rao, according to the Hindustan Times. NDTV reported that the association called her treatment "completely unacceptable" and said scheduling constraints, which the organisers cited, should not come at the cost of an artist's dignity. AICWA said it would support Rao through every legal avenue.
Sources: NDTV, Cine Workers Body Calls Shilpa Rao's Treatment At Bollywood Music Project 'Completely Unacceptable'; Hindustan Times, Exclusive | Shilpa Rao’s performance halted at BMP; No prior warning was given after a 2 hour delayed set: Source.
