Arijit Singh will perform with London’s Grand Symphony Orchestra as part of the Dubai Shopping Festival’s Celebration Nights. Robin Little / Redferns via Getty Images
Arijit Singh will perform with London’s Grand Symphony Orchestra as part of the Dubai Shopping Festival’s Celebration Nights. Robin Little / Redferns via Getty Images

Bollywood playback singer Arijit Singh’s Dubai concert is a case of demand and short supply



In 2013, Indian singer Arijit Singh hit all the right notes in just the third year of his playback-singing career, when his song Tum Hi Ho for the Bollywood film Aashiqui 2 topped the charts and helped the film achieve blockbuster status.

Singh’s January 15 concert with London’s Grand Symphony Orchestra is part of the Dubai Shopping Festival’s Celebration Nights. The show – the 28-year-old’s second UAE appearance after his MTV Unplugged concert at Dubai’s Hard Rock Cafe in January last year – sold out within 10 days of tickets going on sale and has become one of the most in-demand concerts among the South Asian expat community.

“We were hopeful that we would sell out, but we never anticipated doing it two weeks ahead of time,” says Renuka Singh, managing director of Raging Tiger Events. “People usually wait until the last minute to buy their tickets, scouting around for complimentary passes and only making purchases once the sponsor’s resources have been exhausted. This makes organisers apprehensive till almost the show day.”

While the sold-out show is great news for the organisers, fans who didn’t manage to get tickets aren’t as delighted.

Lakshmi Bharathy, an Indian finance professional based in Dubai, says she is heartbroken.

“I missed him in concert in India as well, so that’s why I really wanted to catch him this time. I don’t usually buy tickets too far in advance because they never get sold out so soon.”

Deviani Rao, a graphics designer, has a similar story: “I started looking for tickets a fortnight back and was shocked to see all the good seats were sold out.”

For Rao – who is about to turn 30 – the concert was going to be a birthday treat. “It’s killing me that I haven’t got tickets. I couldn’t have dreamed that I’d be missing out. I absolutely adore Arijit Singh. After attending his last couple of concerts I can just imagine how good this would be with the orchestra.”

Rozy Chaudhri, a British-Pakistani banking recruiter, is another fan left high and dry. “I am so unorganised when it comes to purchasing tickets for any concert, but I always manage to obtain even the most difficult tickets. I didn’t imagine I would encounter any problems this time. I can’t believe that tickets are completely sold out, and even with my network of connections I still can’t get them. I am shocked at the level of demand he has generated.”

What’s more, the unprecedented demand has resulted in early buyers selling their tickets at a premium. At the time of writing this story, there were at least five advertisements on various local websites for the resale of tickets – all at very inflated prices.

Would any of the fans we spoke with consider buying these tickets? While Bharathy says no, Rao and Chaudhri say they would definitely consider it.

“This black market seriously concerns us,” says Renuka Singh. “People end up thinking that we are holding tickets that are then being sold at inflated prices. We also feel that the fans are being unfairly exploited.

“It’s because Arijit Singh is so popular,” she says. “He is a perfect mix of a romantic, soulful singer and hard-hitting rock star. He appeals to a younger and fresher audience, an audience that is more spontaneous and impulsive about buying tickets, plus the buzz on social media.”

• Arijit Singh Live in Dubai with the Grand Symphony Orchestra from London is at Sheikh Rashid Hall, World Trade Centre, on Thursday, January 15. Doors open at 7.30pm, concert begins at 9.30pm

artslife@thenational.ae

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
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Match info

Premier League

Manchester United 2 (Martial 30', Lingard 69')
Arsenal 2 (Mustafi 26', Rojo 68' OG)

EA Sports FC 25
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League final:

Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

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Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Power: 268bhp / 536bhp
Torque: 343Nm / 686Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
On sale: Later this year
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
AIR
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBen%20Affleck%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMatt%20Damon%2C%20Jason%20Bateman%2C%20Ben%20Affleck%2C%20Viola%20Davis%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Saudi Cup race card

1 The Jockey Club Local Handicap (TB) 1,800m (Dirt) $500,000

2 The Riyadh Dirt Sprint (TB) 1,200m (D) $1.500,000

3 The 1351 Turf Sprint 1,351m (Turf) $1,000,000

4 The Saudi Derby (TB) 1600m (D) $800,000

5 The Neom Turf Cup (TB) 2,100m (T) $1,000,000

6 The Obaiya Arabian Classic (PB) 2,000m (D) $1,900,000

7 The Red Sea Turf Handicap (TB) 3,000m (T) $2,500,000

8 The Saudi Cup (TB) 1,800m (D) $20,000,000

if you go

The flights

Emirates offer flights to Buenos Aires from Dubai, via Rio De Janeiro from around Dh6,300. emirates.com

Seeing the games

Tangol sell experiences across South America and generally have good access to tickets for most of the big teams in Buenos Aires: Boca Juniors, River Plate, and Independiente. Prices from Dh550 and include pick up and drop off from your hotel in the city. tangol.com

 

Staying there

Tangol will pick up tourists from any hotel in Buenos Aires, but after the intensity of the game, the Faena makes for tranquil, upmarket accommodation. Doubles from Dh1,110. faena.com

 

Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode

Directors: Raj & DK

Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon

Rating: 4/5

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The specs: Fenyr SuperSport

Price, base: Dh5.1 million

Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six

Transmission: Seven-speed automatic

Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm

Torque: 980Nm @ 4,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 13.5L / 100km

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The bio

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France

Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines

Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.

Favourite Author: My father for sure

Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst

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The specs

Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now

Ultra processed foods

- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns 

- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;

- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces

- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,

- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.

If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.

How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
THE%20HOLDOVERS
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Sri Lanka World Cup squad

Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Isuru Udana, Milinda Siriwardana, Avishka Fernando, Jeevan Mendis, Lahiru Thirimanne, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal.

About Tenderd

Started: May 2018

Founder: Arjun Mohan

Based: Dubai

Size: 23 employees 

Funding: Raised $5.8m in a seed fund round in December 2018. Backers include Y Combinator, Beco Capital, Venturesouq, Paul Graham, Peter Thiel, Paul Buchheit, Justin Mateen, Matt Mickiewicz, SOMA, Dynamo and Global Founders Capital