Karan Aujla is returning to India with another tour, and this time, he wants it to be bigger and better. With Delhi as the first stop of the 12-city run, the tour will also mark his debut stadium shows in the country – something he says was always the dream. But behind the scale and spectacle, he points out, are a lot of sleepless nights as the Tauba Tauba singer works to create an immersive and experiential performance for his fans.You’re touring India again this year after 2024’s run. How much bigger can fans expect the visuals, lighting, and overall production to be this time?The 2024 India run was historic but this time we are taking things a notch higher. We’ve scaled up the production to make it more bespoke and immersive. I want people to feel like they’re part of something bigger. It’s going to be a show that hits you not just with music, but with energy and the theatrics too. We’re taking all the lessons from last time and pushing it even further.
Indian concerts today are matching global production standards. From a live-show perspective, how do you see the evolution of concert experiences for Indian audiences?It’s amazing to see how far we’ve come. The audience now expect a full entertainment live experience that has a vibe, and we’re delivering world-class production, choreography and stagecraft. Indian fans are as passionate as anywhere else, and it’s incredible to give them shows that meet international standards. This fan expectation pushes us to do bigger and better shows.Most cities on this tour are stadium shows. Was this always the dream?Honestly, yeah. When I started out, I manifested performing in front of big crowds at stadiums and being able to be grateful for the fan love from across the globe and now to see that actually happening is something I thank the universe for every single day. Every time I step into a stadium and see so many faces singing my songs back to me, it hits differently. It’s a dream come true. It’s humbling to see so many people connecting with my music on such a big scale.
Karan Aujla tells us, “For me, a live show isn’t just performing, it’s about connecting on a deeper level, feeling the crowd”
How involved are you in planning the stage design, lighting, and technical production for these concerts?I’m pretty hands-on with all of my tours and I like to be involved as much as I can. I work closely with the promoter, Team Innovation, to make sure the stage, lights and visuals reflect the concept and theme I’ve identified. It’s important to me that the audience feels the energy I want to bring – not just hear it.At your Gurgaon show last time (in 2024), you were dancing, singing live, and constantly engaging with the crowd. How important is performance energy and interaction to you during a live show?Energy and interaction – that’s everything to me. I can feel the crowd, and it pushes me to give my all. For me, a live show isn’t just performing, it’s about connecting on a deeper level, feeling the crowd and reciprocating the love besides giving them a performance of their lifetime.‘There will be big surprise moments on this tour’When asked what kind of preparation goes into delivering a stadium-scale performance – from rehearsals to stamina and set planning, the singer says, “It’s a lot of sleepless nights! We rehearse extensively, plan every song transition, figure the choreography order and make sure the visuals match the music perfectly. I also have to keep my stamina up because I want to perform every song at 100%. The goal is that when the crowd is in the stadium, they’re in for a full-blown party without realising how much hard work and long-term planning went into it.”Last time, the singer surprisedfans with a few special acts, talking about which moment stood out the most for him, he adds, “Every surprise was special and all of the surprise acts are like family to me, but the moments when the crowd just went wild, those stick with me. Seeing people react like that reminds me why I do this.”Excited about the upcoming tour but careful not to reveal too much, he hints that, much like last time, fans can expect a few surprises this year too. He shares, “I can’t give away too much, but we’ve planned some new things that I think people will really enjoy. It’s going to be absolutely wicked, and there will definitely be big moments they weren’t expecting.”