A surprise live performance by Ed Sheeran on the streets of an Indian city was stopped by police who claimed the singer had no permission to be there.
Fans in Bengaluru, the capital of the southern Indian state of Karnataka, were pleasantly shocked to find the singer performing his hit “Shape of You” with no prior announcement whatsoever on Sunday.
In videos shared on social media, the Grammy-winning musician can be seen walking up to a corner on Church Street and addressing the fans gathered there, telling them he can only stay for “one song”.
The crowd joins in as he begins to sing, but a policeman arrives within seconds and unplugs his microphone.
At the end of the video, Sheeran says to the crowd: “We have permission to be here, but this policeman is shutting us down. But we’ll see you later.”
While Bengaluru cops say there was no permission given to @edsheeran to perform & that there are no provisions for such gigs, Ed Sheeran says he has been asked to play just one song, after he was stopped he claims he had permission but police shutting it down. Both clips 👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/BURsgwsm5w
— Deepak Bopanna (@dpkBopanna) February 9, 2025
In the evening, Sheeran posted a statement on his social media, saying: “We had permission to busk, by the way. Hence, us playing in that exact spot was planned out beforehand. It wasn't just us randomly turning up. All good though. See you at the show tonight x.”
However, the police have denied ever giving permission.
“I refused to give permission because Church Street gets very crowded. That is the reason he was asked to vacate the place," Bengaluru police official Shekar T Tekkannanavar told news agency ANI.
The Independent has reached out to representatives for Ed Sheeran and the Bengaluru police.
Sheeran is currently on the India leg of his Mathematics Tour, and has performed in Pune, Hyderabad, and Chennai. In Chennai, Sheeran was joined on stage by the renowned Indian composer AR Rahman, where the two performed Rahman’s 1994 Tamil song “Urvasi” from the soundtrack of Kadhalan.
Sheeran performed two shows in Bengaluru on 8 and 9 February after an additional show was added due to a huge demand for tickets. He brought with him on stage Indian singer Shilpa Rao, performing the popular song “Chuttamalle” in its original Telugu.
Videos of Sheeran busking, which have gone viral on social media, received mixed reactions from fans. While some were unhappy that his impromptu performance was shut down, many commended the police for doing so, citing safety precautions.
“The reason that cop shut down Ed Sheeran wasn't to prevent pandemonium on church street or maintain order on a busy Sunday or anything. It's the same reason we can't read in Cubbon Park or visit any public park outside of morning walk hours or hold hands anywhere. Because we live in an uncleocracy. And there's nothing uncles love more than to stop young people from having fun,” said one social media user.
“Cry about VIP treatment throughout the year and then cry some more when police doesn't allow Ed Sheeran to perform on the already crowded streets of Bengaluru without permission,” said another.
This is the new India where cops allow you to pee in public but not play music.
— Public Pulse (@public_pulseIN) February 9, 2025
Where cops allow wrong side driving but not play music.
Where no permission needed for illegal banners but yes for live performance
Sorry @edsheeran https://t.co/kIFEq1JpEF
Bengaluru, also known as India’s IT capital, regularly sees traffic snarls during peak travel times, with commuters often waiting hours for roads to clear up. According to the 2024 global traffic index report by Dutch location technology firm Tom Tom that was released earlier this year, the city was ranked third slowest.
According to the report, the average travel time to go 10km in Bengaluru was 30 minutes and 10 seconds, 50 seconds over the time it took in 2023.
