MUMBAI : As soon as ticket sales for Coldplay’s three Mumbai concerts opened at noon on Sunday, BookMyShow’s website and app were flooded with eager fans. In just 30 minutes, all 1.5 lakh tickets across the January 18, 19, and newly added January 21 shows were completely sold out, leaving fans shocked by the lightning-fast sell-out. Each show has a venue capacity of 50,000, but even that wasn’t enough to meet the overwhelming demand.
Fans reported queuing well before noon, constantly refreshing their screens in hopes of scoring a ticket to Coldplay’s second visit to India. However, many were disappointed as technical issues caused by the heavy traffic temporarily crashed BookMyShow’s platform. The company acknowledged the disruption, attributing it to suspicious and malicious activity, which was swiftly addressed with minimal impact to genuine fans.
But BookMyShow’s technical hurdles weren’t the only ones frustrating fans. Reseller platforms quickly began listing tickets at astronomical prices. While official tickets were priced between ₹2,000 and ₹35,000, resellers like Viagogo marked them up to as high as ₹10 lakh. A ₹12,500 ticket was listed for over ₹3.36 lakh, and standing tickets originally priced at ₹6,450 were resold for up to ₹50,000.
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BookMyShow added a third show on January 21 to accommodate demand, but it too sold out within minutes, pushing fans to turn to resellers and social media for a chance to attend. Some individuals used the ticket frenzy to their advantage by hosting giveaways or reselling their ‘extra’ tickets at inflated prices.
The surge in resale activity raises questions about the legality of ticket scalping in India. Reselling tickets at inflated prices can be illegal in states like Maharashtra and Karnataka, with violators facing fines or imprisonment under certain conditions. Concert organizers, such as Coldplay’s team, often have policies against reselling, which can result in ticket cancellations if violated. Consumer protection laws can also be invoked if fraudulent practices or misleading information are involved in these transactions.
