Live events: Not just an urban vibe

A great venue, experimenting with outfits to make sure there’s no FOMO (fear of missing out), your favourite company and, of course, the purpose of your galavant. These are only a few, but some of the most important things that people consider when stepping out with the expectation of having a great evening or a gram-worthy post!

 

Then came the pandemic which proved doomsday for on-ground events.

 

However, towards the second half of last year, in particular, the last quarter of it and the first few months of 2023, we are seeing these events return and how!

 

To get a better understanding, we speak with experts on whether the pandemic has awakened users enough to leave their homes and experiment with things like never before. Moreover, we recognise how big the appetite for these small events is now, as compared to mask-free times.

 

How did the sales sail

 

In pre-pandemic times, BookMyShow saw successful large-scale on-ground experiences like U2: The Joshua Tree Tour – India (2019) which witnessed attendance by over 40,000 fans. The ticketing company listed over 17,500 events in 2019.

 

Those were significant numbers. But, the hunger for on-ground events keeps increasing. Proof of the pudding comes through the numbers shared by Anil Makhija, COO, live entertainment and venues, BookMyShow. In 2022, about eight million people stepped out for live entertainment from across 19,000 plus events.

 

“The 'Over the Top Tour with AP Dhillon' in 2021, along with the recently concluded Lollapalooza India in 2023 saw a mammoth footfall of over 60,000 festival-goers,” he added.

 

Giving out more data from last year alone, Varun Khare, business head, Paytm Insider, said, “Audiences had over 16,500 live experiences to choose from on the platform, which is almost a 30% increase, as compared to 2019.”

 

Is rural ruling?

 

Tier 2 and tier 3 markets are seemingly competing to become the life of the party. “Growth in transactions for on-ground events in these markets saw a rise of 59% on BookMyShow,” shared Makhija.

 

This point is backed by the fact that Paytm Insider saw a host of artists like Diljit Dosanjh ringing in the New Year with his performance in Jaipur, while Lucky Ali wowed the audiences live, with his gruff in Chandigarh.

 

While overall transactions from Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Goa and Pune and other main cities grew by over 30% compared to pre-covid times, Khare shared that the overall transactions across other cities grew by 132%, as compared to the previous year.

 

For Makhija, the highest demand came from both the top metro cities as well as the tier 2 cities. “Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chennai took the cake for generating some of the highest ticketing sales for on-ground events across genres. These were closely followed by Ahmedabad, Raipur, Pune, Goa, Lucknow, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Cuttack, Guwahati, Dehradun and Imphal,” he added.

 

Zomato forayed into the experiential dining and entertainment space, with Zomaland, its annual carnival that brings together people, food and restaurants, alongside music, candid humour and other social banter.

 

 

Nishant Taneja, business head, Zomato Live, revealed that the festival received an overwhelming response from both New Delhi and Mumbai.

 

However, the underrated cities too jumped ship from the ordinary and dove into this experience. “In Pune, we had the pleasure of hosting 28,000 food lovers and becoming one of the most attended food festivals in the city's history. In Hyderabad, tickets sold out days before the event, proving that food and fun truly bring people together,” Taneja added.

 

What’s in it for brands?

 

The recently held music festival Lollapalooza India saw a plethora of brands put up their stalls, one of which was Levi’s India. The brand set up a Tailor Shop with designs created by 12 artists across India.

 

 

Speaking about how the event helped them, Saikot Das, marketing director - South Asia, Middle East and Africa Levi Strauss & Co., said, “Lollapalooza was the first big event of the year for us. People responded with energy, engagement and real love for the brand. On-ground events aid Levi’s to build on the brand’s connection with a new generation of fans. By curating offline events, we aim to help create memorable experiences and be present in the lives of our consumers at moments when they are their true selves.”

 

Large crowds are now common at events both big and small, which has made live events an attractive option for brands to invest in and allocate spends towards.

 

Shedding light on what is to come, Makhija explained, “More and more audiences are now choosing to go to live events by themselves as indicated earlier. With the conclusion of the first-ever Lollapalooza India, we are looking forward to hosting the upcoming editions annually over the coming years. Not just music, but comedy and theatre shows, exhibitions, fleas and sporting events such as the IPL and ISL continue to pave the way for consumers across genres.”

 

How big can small get?

 

Experts believe that post the pandemic too, smaller capacity shows at venues with regular programming continue to do well.

 

“Venues like Social and antisocial, Hard Rock Cafe, Fandom and EXT by The Moonshine Project amongst others host over 200+ experiences monthly at outlets across the country.” Khare shared.

 

According to Makhija, shows are being hosted in tier 2 and tier 3 cities due to the growth of virtual events in these markets during the pandemic.

 

He explained, “Small-scale events have been performing extremely well with a lot of these events bringing in a large sea of audiences and supporting smaller gigs and performers. The ambit of consumption for events across music, comedy, theatre and performance has widened significantly due to this shift. We are optimistic that this trend will continue to grow as entertainment enthusiasts seek live shows in both big and small markets.”

 

Speaking about the way ahead for Levi’s, Das stated that his focus will remain on driving the brand’s direct-to-consumer business and creating a deeper relationship with its customers through experiential.

 

“We want to be increasingly associated with brands with which consumers have a real connection. This has been seen across the board, not only in the larger cities but also in smaller towns. On-ground events are just another step in further building a connection with our consumers,” he added.

 

To sum it up, experts are certain that this bon appetit is no longer restricted to the superficially cool kids. Small is definitely on its way to becoming the new big!