Lady Gaga waited for a lifetime to perform in India

Just when we were celebrating the debut of Formula One in India, Arjun Rampal dropped another bomb early in September this year.
At a press conference in Delhi about the Grand Prix after parties, the actor revealed his trump card – an hour long private performance by Mother Monster Lady Gaga. Arjun’s coup of sorts delivered the ultimate verdict for the world at large – we could host the Grand Prix and close it with the grandeur it requires.
“We were hosting one of the biggest sporting events in the world and we had to assert that just like the Grand Prix everywhere in the world, we could also match the sporting spectacle in terms of the entertainment we offered,” says Rampal, adding that Lady Gaga was always his first choice for this and he wasn’t surprised that it worked out. “She had always wanted to come to India and when we approached her for this, she knew that she would be part of an exclusive event,” he said. And that’s the reason why, says Arjun, even the guests were willing to shell out `40,000 per head to watch Gaga wield magic on stage, as he adds, “It wasn’t a concert. It was a private performance and you got an entire experience for that amount.”
But, on her part, it wasn’t just the `40,000 ticket buyers that Gaga targeted while on her maiden visit to the country. The singer, who has reportedly sold an estimated 23 million albums and 64 million singles worldwide, also hosted a press conference to talk about her album “Born This Way” and to promote that here. At that time, Sunil D’Sa, vice president for Universal Music India, had been quoted as saying, “With the massive success of Gaga’s albums in India ever since she broke onto the scene in 2008, we at Universal Music India always wanted to bring her down to give her fans a chance to experience the Gaga phenomenon ‘in person’. Thus, we are ecstatic that she’s made this possible and are indeed privileged to host a ‘superstar’ like Lady Gaga here in Delhi, India. She is a superstar in the truest sense of the word as she is not just a great musician, but a fashion icon, a fabulous live performer and a philanthropist as well. Her latest album, “Born This Way”, has been one of the fastest selling international albums in India this year…” In fact, Gaga also collaborated with Salim-Sulaiman for an Indian remix of “Born This Way”, just for the country.
Gaga’s decision to create an Indian remix, besides coming here, reaffirms the point about the country’s growing pull for international musicians. As Sony Music India marketing director Sanujeet Bhujabal said in a news report earlier, “India is a big English speaking market. If a recording label has to push the envelope in this market, it has to bring more artists (musicians) to perform in India….”
With her debut performance in India, that was what Gaga and her recording label tried to do. And we have to say that it certainly was a monster’s ball!