Fans furious after Hrithik-Madhuri Durban show gets cancelled

Johannesburg: A show featuring Bollywood stars Hrithik Roshan, Sonakshi Sinha, Madhuri Dixit and singer Ankit Tiwari was cancelled just hours before its scheduled start at the Moses Mabidha Stadium in Durban today.

Thousands of fans, who had travelled from all over the country to attend the event over the long weekend here threatened to sue the organisers, who did not refund the ticket price but promised that the show will be rescheduled next month.

“There is no way I can come back with my extended family of 13 who came here from Cape Town to enjoy the show,” Mohamed Hoosen told PTI from Durban by telephone.

“It cost us more than Rs 200,000 just for airfares and hotel accommodation, besides the cost of the show tickets at Rs 2,000 each for front rows. How can we pay this again? I will definitely be talking to my lawyers,” Hoosen added.

Show organisers Airport Times said the show had to be postponed because visas for the artistes were not issued in time.

The organisers could not be reached for a comment but they posted a statement on their official Facebook page.

“Good Morning All Patrons, due to unforeseen circumstances A Night of the Stars Reloaded Event has been postponed to a further date which will be announced.

“All the tickets will remain the same, the artistes will be the same, the venue will be the same, so please hold on to your tickets. We thank you for your support and understanding and must apologise for any inconvenience caused.”

Sadhana Dayanand of Airport Times got into a spat with the Durban municipality, blaming them for not being supportive of “Indian events” in the city.

Dayanand sent an email to the the weekly Independent on Saturday where she claimed the event was not getting enough support because it was an Indian show.

“The support request process was initiated in January and, to date, all we got from Council was that there is no budget.

“If there is no budget, then the question arises as to how the city makes the budget possible for a non-Indian event whereby there is millions laid out? I am sure if this is audited, then several council employees will be brought to book,” Dayanand wrote in the email.

Mthunzi Gumede, mayor Andile Gumede’s spokesperson, told the weekly it was “sad” that the city was getting drawn into the cancellation debacle.

“We do not give support based on colour. There are certain policies and procedures to be followed.
“And if you look back to events held in the city recently, you would have seen the mayor and (Indian-origin) deputy mayor Fawzi Peer attending events of all cultures and religions, showing that we support one and all.”