Kolkata witnessed a truly magical moment on Sunday night when sitar virtuoso Anoushka Shankar surprised audiences during her India Tour’s Kolkata show by inviting Arijit Singh on stage during her concert. The unexpected collaboration sent the crowd into raptures, marking Arijit’s first live stage appearance since announcing his decision to step away from playback singing.
Anoushka later shared a glimpse of the special moment on Instagram, expressing her emotion as she welcomed Arijit to the stage amid thunderous applause. “So much more to say later, but for now, my heart!!!! Hearing the one and only @arijitsingh bringing my father’s rarely heard Bengali song to life and then sharing our new music with Kolkata, was truly one for the books,” she wrote.
In another clip from the evening, Arijit is seen walking onto the stage, candidly admitting to being nervous. “I am very nervous. Thank you for having me,” he said, dressed simply in a traditional white kurta-pyjama set.
Arijit joined Anoushka and percussionist Bickram Ghosh to perform Maya Bhora Raati, a Bengali composition by the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar and originally sung by Lakshmi Shankar. The performance served as a poignant tribute to Anoushka’s father and resonated deeply with the Kolkata audience.
During the interaction, Arijit also spoke about visiting Anoushka at her home and the two composing music together. The evening culminated in another unforgettable moment as Arijit and Anoushka performed Traces of You as a duet a song originally sung by Anoushka and her half-sister Norah Jones bringing the concert to an emotional close.