Leave AR Rahman out of it. We take responsibility, says ACTC founder Hemanth

The 'Marakuma Nenjam' organiser said unavoidable circumstances like overcrowding and time constraints caused discomfort to the public at the concert on 10 September.

ByManigandan KR

Published Sep 13, 2023 | 4:00 PM ⚊UpdatedSep 13, 2023 | 4:00 PM

ACTC founder Hemanth takes full responsibility for AR Rahman concert mishap

ACTC founder Hemanth takes full responsibility for AR Rahman concert mishap. (X)

Tendering an unconditional apology to all those who had faced discomfort at the “Marakuma Nenjam” concert of AR Rahman that was held on 10 September in Chennai, Hemanth, the founder and CEO of ACTC — the firm that organised the event — said they were taking complete responsibility for the poor manner in which the live music concert was organised.

Rahman’s concert “Marakuma Nenjam” was held at the Adityaram Palace City in Chennai’s ECR on Sunday, 10 September.

In a video clip released on the firm’s social media handle, Hemanth first thanked all the fans who had supported the event and then Oscar-winning music composer AR Rahman for beautifully conducting the event.

“What I wish to say is that some people have faced discomfort due to some unavoidable circumstances. I humbly wish to apologise for the discomfort they faced. I don’t have any regrets in apologising,” he said.

The organiser said they had made preparations for such an event with the motive of enabling people to enjoy AR Rahman’s music. Further, he added that some unavoidable circumstances like overcrowding and time constraints had resulted in causing discomfort.

“I apologise to all those who bought tickets and couldn’t enter the venue. We, at ACTC, take responsibility for what happened.”

Related: Public furious as AR Rahman’s ‘Marakuma Nenjam’ concert turns chaotic

Clean chit to AR Rahman

Giving music director AR Rahman a clean chit, the ACTC founder said, “AR Rahman sir is a legendary artiste. His part was limited to performing at the event, which he did exceptionally well. There can be no doubts about that.”

He further explained, “All those who were seated inside enjoyed the concert. Recently, some people have been putting out posts criticising Rahman sir on social media. Rahman sir has nothing to do with organising the event or the discomfort faced by the audiences.”

“Therefore I very humbly request you not to target Rahman sir. Do not spread any reports focussing on him in relation to this incident on social media. We, at ACTC, take full responsibility for what happened,” he added.

Ticket money to be refunded

Claiming that they had procured all the necessary permissions in a proper and orderly way for the concert, Hemanth said that the money of those who had purchased tickets for the concert but couldn’t enter the venue because of overcrowding would be refunded.

“Those who paid for the concert will be refunded. Be it ₹500 or ₹50,000. We will refund the amount if you have been unable to attend,” he added.

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Chaos at the event

The event was poorly organised, resulting in several people having to turn back home without attending the concert despite having bought tickets worth several thousand.

Fans, who attended the concert, alleged that the place was overcrowded as a result of the organisers selling more tickets than what they should ideally have. As a result, the venue had at least twice the number of people that it could accommodate, making it difficult for those who had come to even get in.

Even those who managed to get in had to jostle their way into the venue and battle surging crowds. The situation was so alarming that several people who scampered out said that they feared a stampede could happen at any moment.

The organisers and music director AR Rahman came in for sharp criticism from both fans and the public for the discomfort caused both to audiences at the venue and the public who were put to hardship because of the traffic jams that were caused around the venue.

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