BookMyShow Executive Questioned in Alleged Coldplay Concert Ticket Scam

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police interrogated Anil Makhija, Chief Operating Officer of Big Tree Entertainment (the parent company of BookMyShow), for approximately seven hours on Monday as part of an investigation into an alleged ticketing scam for Coldplay’s upcoming concerts in January 2025.

The inquiry stems from a complaint filed by lawyer Amit Vyas, who accuses BookMyShow, the official ticketing platform for the concert, of colluding with black-market operators to hoard tickets and sell them at inflated prices. Thousands of fans were left disappointed when tickets for the British rock band's three concerts in Navi Mumbai sold out almost immediately, causing the BookMyShow website and app to crash shortly before ticket sales began on September 22.

In Vyas's complaint, he claims that the ticket sale process was manipulated by BookMyShow to disadvantage genuine customers, who were allegedly logged out of the platform right before the tickets went live. Simultaneously, it is alleged that tickets were made available in bulk to unauthorized reselling platforms like Viagogo, which then listed them at exorbitant prices—one ticket initially priced at ₹2,500 was reportedly sold for up to ₹2,50,000.

A police officer involved in the investigation stated, “We questioned Makhija for seven hours. We had summoned CEO Ashish Hemrajani, but he sent Makhija in his place. We are analyzing Makhija's responses to determine the next steps.”

In response to the allegations, a BookMyShow spokesperson asserted, “We have noticed that unauthorized platforms are listing tickets for Coldplay's Music Of The Spheres World Tour 2025 in India. BookMyShow is not associated with these platforms and strongly condemns the practice of ticket scalping and black marketing.” The spokesperson also noted that the company has filed a complaint with the police and is cooperating fully with the investigation.

The spokesperson cautioned consumers against purchasing tickets from unauthorized sources, stating that such tickets may be invalid or counterfeit. The investigation into this matter is ongoing, with authorities determined to uncover the truth behind the alleged ticketing fraud.