Anoushka Shankar Slams Air India After Her Sitar Arrives Severely Damaged (WATCH)

Anoushka Shankar’s journey with Air India turned into distress when her sitar arrived severely damaged. The musician says she trusted the airline with her prized instrument, but negligence left it unusable and sparked online outrage

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Anoushka’s Shock After Opening Her Sitar Case

Anoushka Shankar did not expect her return to Air India to become a public controversy, but she felt compelled to speak up after discovering her sitar in an unplayable condition. She said she had trusted the airline with something priceless, only to be met with damage beyond use.

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Anoushka Shankar Sitar

The Musician Calls Out Air India

The sitarist criticised Air India for failing to protect her instrument, even after she paid a special handling fee. In her Instagram video, she explained that she initially thought the sitar was out of tune, but upon examining it, she realised it had cracks and structural damage. She questioned how such carelessness could occur, especially when she had taken every precaution.

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Her Strong Message on Social Media

Anoushka expressed that the incident left her deeply upset. In her post, she wrote that the damage could only be the result of disregard for fragile instruments. She added that returning to Air India after many years had been disappointing, as she had hoped her traditional Indian instrument would be handled safely.

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Recent Grammy Recognition

This incident comes shortly after Anoushka received multiple Grammy nominations for “Chapter III: We Return to Light,” created with Alam Khan and Sarathy Korwar. The album is competing in the Best Global Music Album category at the 2026 Grammy Awards, scheduled for 1 February in Los Angeles.