BUT BIEBER DIDN’T SING, SAY THE BELIEBERS

Pop star lip-syncs badly at first India concert; fans feel cheated after the huge build-up

Pop star Justin Bieber’s first ever concert in India set Navi Mumbai churning from Wednesday afternoon, with tens of thousands of fans heading for the venue, DY Patil Stadium. Most of them sang along and danced to the music during the show, but several also expressed disappointment that Bieber appeared to be mostly lipsyncing. Also, the 23-yearold Canadian superstar’s performance was considered “low on energy” by some fans.

“It’s like [Justin] is playing it straight from his CD. I cannot believe that he is pulling this off. It’s quite clear that he is not singing these songs,” said Amit Sarkar, who had been waiting for this live concert since February.

Amit wasn’t the only one who noticed this. Tina Joshi, another young fan at the concert, felt let down by the look and sound of the pop idol. “Maybe it’s the heat and he is not used to it. It’s disappointing to see him perform like this,” she said. “I expected him to sing LIVE, but he just sounds like his songs on my play list.”

While some were disappointed that Bieber didn’t sing live — effectively defeating the purpose of a live show — some others were heartbroken that their favourite pop star didn’t sing some of his popular numbers. “He did not sing I’m the one!” retorted a fan, Anurag Dixit, when asked what, for him, was the low point of the concert. “It’s such a nice song... my favourite. I don’t know why he didn’t sing it,” he added.

However, Bieber’s dance troupe was flawless, as observed by the audience. “I think the dancers were his only saviours,” said concert attendee Siddharth Arora, adding, “Honestly, it was a bit underwhelming from him, considering that this was his first show here [in India]. He has promised to come back, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed for the next time.”

WAS IT THE HEAT, OR DID HE JUST NOT CARE? MANY FANS AT THE MUMBAI CONCERT FELT LET DOWN BY JUSTIN BIEBER’S ‘LOW ON ENERGY’ SHOW