You won’t believe what Air India did to Anoushka Shankar’s sitar — she’s furious!
Renowned sitar virtuoso Anoushka Shankar has criticised Air India after discovering her sitar was damaged during a recent flight, according to media reports.
In a video posted on Instagram, the multiple Grammy Award nominee expressed shock and frustration over the condition of her instrument, saying the damage occurred despite the airline charging a special “handling fee.”
“First, I was just looking at the top of my sitar and I thought it was really out of tune. After I tuned it, I picked it up to play and that’s when I realised this was my first time flying Air India in a long time,” she said.
“The country this music belongs to. And this is the first time anything like this has happened to my instrument in 15 or 17 years. How have you done this? I have special cases. You guys charge a handling fee and yet you’ve done this.”
Shankar, daughter of legendary sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar, wrote in her caption that she was “devastated and truly disturbed” by the airline’s treatment of her beloved instrument. “How on earth does damage like this happen without willful disregard? It feels especially sad… it seems an Indian instrument can’t be safe with them,” she said, adding that she had flown thousands of times on other airlines without “even a peg going out of tune.”
Her post triggered a wave of reactions online, with several social media users sharing similar experiences with Air India. One user wrote: “Every time I have to travel with @airindia I am SCARED for my luggage and my life! And of course their bad service overall!” Another commented: “This is shocking @airindia, do better.”
A third user expressed dismay, saying the airline had disrespected “our world-recognised goddess… her legacy, the soul of her sitar and hers.”
Meanwhile, Shankar continues her successful musical run with two fresh nominations at the 2026 Grammy Awards — Best Global Music Album for Chapter III: We Return to Light and Best Global Music Performance for Daybreak. These latest nods bring her career total to 13 Grammy nominations, cementing her position as one of the most-honoured Indian-origin artists internationally.
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