Arijit Singh performs with Anoushka Shankar in Kolkata, his 1st show after quitting playback singing; fans get emotional

Arijit Singh joined Anoushka Shankar and Bickram Ghosh on stage to sing Maya Bhora Raati, a Bengali song. Watch here.

Singer Arijit Singh performed his first show in Kolkata days after announcing his decision to retire from playback singing. Several videos and pictures of the singer performing with sitar maestro Anoushka Shankar on Sunday emerged on social media platforms.

Arijit Singh performed with Anoushka Shankar in Kolkata. (X/@ASFAN_MAKKAR)

Arijit Singh performs in 1st show after quitting playback singing

In a clip at the event held in Kolkata's Netaji Indoor Stadium, Anoushka welcomed him on stage as the crowd erupted in cheers and applause. He said, "I am very nervous. Thank you for having me," he said.

Arijit joined Anoushka and Bickram Ghosh on stage to sing Maya Bhora Raati. The track is a Bengali song sung by Lakshmi Shankar and composed by the late sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar. Arijit also talked about visiting Anoushka at her home and composing a song together.

Fans got emotional listening to Arijit live

He also sang a duet with Anoushka on Traces of You, a song by Anoushka and Norah Jones. Reacting to the videos, a fan said, "I feel so emotional--happy and heartbroken at the same time." A person wrote, "Oh Arijit! Missed your voice. Getting goosebumps." A comment read, "Wow!! What a beautiful surprise." "It feels like listening to him live after ages," an X user tweeted.

Arijit's post about quitting playback singing

On January 27, Arijit announced that he will no longer take up new assignments as a playback vocalist, calling an end to a "wonderful" journey. In a message shared with his fans on X (formerly Twitter), Arijit expressed gratitude for the love he has received over the years.

"Hello, Happy New Year to all. I want to thank you all for giving me so much of love all these years as listeners. I am happy to announce that I am not gonna be taking any new assignments as a playback vocalist from now on. I am calling it off. It was a wonderful journey," he wrote in his post on Instagram.

About Arijit's career

Arijit is also a composer, music producer and instrumentalist. He began his career by participating in the reality show Fame Gurukul in 2005. He made his Hindi film debut in 2011 with the song Phir Mohabbat (Murder 2). He received wider recognition with the release of Tum Hi Ho from Aashiqui 2 in 2013.

Over the years, he lent his voice to several iconic tracks, including Tum Hi Ho, Channa Mereya, Agar Tum Saath Ho, Raabta, Kesariya, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, Tera Yaar Hoon Main, Tujhe Kitna Chahne Lage and Hum To Tere Hi Liye The from director Vishal Bhardwaj's upcoming O Romeo.