Row over A R Rahman's Chennai concert due to 'mismanagement'; organisers say 'we are accountable'

Music maestro A R Rahman’s much-awaited live concert, Marakkuma Nenjam (Can the heart forget (the music)?) here on Sunday turned into Marakkavey Mudiyathu (can never forget) for hundreds of his die-hard fans as chaos ruled the show. People who spent thousands of rupees to get tickets for the concert complained that they weren’t allowed entry and that a stampede-like situation prevailed, while women fans took to social media to allege that they were molested and groped by men in the melee on Sunday night.

The chaos led to overcrowding and severe traffic jam on the scenic East Coast Road – the convoy of Chief Minister M K Stalin who was returning from Mamallapuram was also stuck for 15 minutes due to the snarl and his vehicle had to be diverted through the opposite lane.

The BJP tried to inject communal angle to what was otherwise purely an entertainment event. Tamil Nadu BJP treasurer S R Shekhar termed Rahman as “communal” and that he always used majority Hindus for his “advantage.” “Now, Hindus have been humiliated,” he said, invoking a barrage of criticism from Rahman’s fans and general public alike.

As chaos in the concert dominated the discourse in social media, Tamil Nadu DGP Shankar Jiwal directed Tambaram Police Commissioner Amal Raj to launch a probe into the traffic and other arrangements made for the concert, despite looking into whether tickets were “over-sold.” While the capacity was only for 20,000 people, nearly 50,00 had arrived at the venue, the Commissioner added.

ACTC Events, which came under criticism for poorly organising Rahman’s concert in Coimbatore in the past, said it sold 36,000 tickets and gave 5,000 complimentary tickets.

After the outrage on social media, Rahman took to X and asked people who weren’t able to enter the venue despite possessing tickets to share a copy of it and email to him. ““Some people call me G.O.A.T. (Greatest of all times) Let me be the sacrificial goat this time for all of us to wake up…,” Rahman wrote on social media.

But his response, which many felt lacked empathy as it harped only on the financial aspect, received much more flak with fans asking him to take responsibility and apologise for the chaos.

Charulatha Rangarajan, an independent filmmaker, alleged that she was groped by a man at the event and termed Rahman’s response as “half-baked apology” and regretted the fact that event organisers are not being made accountable by the music composer.

“Woke up to having such a weight in my heart. The unsafe feeling I have today is haunting me. One of the people who groped me, literally looked into my eyes when I just asked him for the way and move. I'm exhausted,” she said.

“It is not just about money. So many have undergone emotional trauma and saying that you will refund the money alone is not enough. Rahman has to take responsibility,” another person who bought the ticket said.

Those who were denied entry said the show was organised “very poorly” and executed without any “proper plan”. Social media platforms, Instagram and X, were full of videos and posts calling out Rahman and the organisers, “oversold” tickets without making adequate seating arrangements for them.

“I had a diamond ticket but still I couldn’t enter the concert venue. What’s the point of spending so much? I returned from the venue after my son started feeling suffocated in the crowd,” a woman said.