Snubbed by sections of people in South Goa, Sunburn is now making a move in the North. Organisers of the popular EDM festival have now proposed hosting it in Camurlim-Tivim. The Camurlim comunidade is scheduled to discuss the matter in a meeting on October 6, amid indications that people in the locality are bracing up to oppose the fest.
While the organisers continue to search for a place to host the event, it has unveiled its lineup naming "Grammy Award-winning EDM juggernaut Skrillex and South Korean global icon Peggy". It has also named Alesso, KSHMR and ARGY and assured fans of a musical experience “like no other”. There is a mention of the event being organised along the “iconic shores” of Goa from December 28 to 30. Bookings had already begun on the online portal Bookmyshow.com with ticket prices ranging from Rs 2,500 to Rs 8,000 per day. The 3-day ticket costs between Rs 6,500 and 40,000. The VVIP tables for three days range from Rs 1.77 lakh to Rs 14.75 lakh. The portal, however, mentions that the venue is yet to be announced.
The lineup mentioned above needs prior bookings and advance payments that run into crores — for example, Skrillex charges in the range of 5 to 7.5 lakh dollars for a single-day performance. Peggy Gou would charge between 75,000 and 1.5 lakh dollars.
Going by the announcements made, hosting the event in Goa is a foregone conclusion. The plans reflect their confidence in the system and nowhere does it reflect any uncertainty. Not a bit. The organisers continue to make a mockery of the systems in Goa while authorities remain mute spectators and offer vague reasoning.
It baffles the mind when one tries to rationalise the optimism against the simmering discontent on the ground.
We recall when Sunburn opened plans a good two months back promising fans with a surreal sea experience in South Goa while eyeing the Quitol plateau at Betul. The overwhelming opposition from locals across the South and several village panchayats in the South meant that they had to beat a hurried retreat. An initially hesitant IDC bowed down to pressure and finally rejected the proposal forcing organisers to look elsewhere. The next stop was Verna as a team of online portal Bookmyshow.com descended at Verna industrial estate, only to realise that there is opposition there too.
While the news of Sunburn making a landing in Camurlim did the rounds, mixed reactions emerged from the BJP legislators. Rajya Sabha MP and BJP President Sadanand Tanavade expressed his displeasure over the move, and MLA Nilkanth Halarnkar trod a cautious path by shifting the onus on other departments and steering away from giving his opinion. People in the area have been livid over the development and it appeared that there could be similar opposition in North Goa.
The news of Sunburn going venue-hunting is not surprising, what is appalling is the fact that authorities are meekly allowing organisers to take the system and people’s sentiments for granted. Showbiz involves big money, especially events of this stature. Organisers of Sunburn have managed to find a way somehow, even when they were at odds against the government and fighting over dues in the High Court. The trail shows that the organisers have managed to pull it through despite the tough terrain and roadblocks, and it won’t be a surprise this time.
The unfortunate part is that the chinks in our systems are shamelessly showing, and so is the money power behind big-ticket events.
