Grammy-nominated sitarist Anoushka Shankar has publicly accused Air India of mishandling her instrument after she discovered significant cracks in her sitar following a recent flight. She shared a video on Instagram in which she expressed her shock and dismay: “This was the first time I’ve flown with Air India in a long time… after 15 or 17 years this is the first time something like this has happened to my instrument.”
In her post, Shankar pointed out that she always travels with a hard protective case and paid a handling fee for extra care — yet found her instrument damaged upon arrival. “How did you do that? I have special cases, you charge a handling fee, and yet you did it?” she asked, emphasizing the emotional attachment she has to her sitar.
Appeal from a world class musician
Shankar wrote in the caption that she was “devastated and truly disturbed” by what happened. She said it was particularly painful because she had decided to fly with Air India after a long break; “It seems the Indian instrument can’t be safe with them,” she lamented, adding that she had flown “thousands of flights” with other airlines without so much as a sitar pin going out of tune.
Her revelations reopened a long-running debate about how airlines handle fragile musical instruments. Many Indian musicians have previously complained of damage or loss during travel, especially on flights where instruments have to be checked in as cargo rather than carried on board.
An outpouring of support and outrage online
The post sparked a wave of reactions from fellow musicians, fans and social media users – many expressing solidarity and frustration. The comments below her post reflected anger and sympathy, with users calling the situation “unbelievable” and demanding the airline be held accountable.
Musician Anvita Shankar wrote: “This is unbelievable. How badly did @airindia have to handle the sitar to make it happen in those safe hard cases!!?? I’m so sorry.”
Musician Vishal Dadlani wrote: “God this is heartbreaking! I’m so sorry.”
A third user wrote: “Oh man!!!! That hurts 😢 I’m so sorry!”
This was not the first incident
Classical musician Arnab Bhattacharya found his sarod bag and instrument damaged on arrival in Abu Dhabi.
