SRK’s 15-artist UNIFYD fest: Arijit, Sonu, Karan headline

Shah Rukh Khan is stepping from screen storytelling into live music curation. The superstar has announced UNIFYD Festival, a one-day event scheduled for March 20, 2027, at Etihad Live in Abu Dhabi.

The first phase of the bill brings three very different musical energies to the same stage: Arijit Singh, Sonu Nigam and Karan Aujla. Reports suggest the final line-up will feature multiple stages and around 15 artists, with more names expected in the coming weeks.

Why it matters

UNIFYD is being positioned as a showcase for South Asian musical talent across the Middle East and other international markets. For Hindi film fans, that is bigger than a single concert: it takes the voices behind Bollywood’s most-loved songs to a genuinely global platform, away from film promotions and awards nights.

Shah Rukh Khan told Rolling Stone that music has “the same extraordinary power” to bring people together as the stories he has spent his career telling on screen. That framing matters because it positions the festival as a cultural export, not just a star-backed gig.

What the line-up signals

The headlining trio gives the festival a deliberately wide net. Sonu Nigam represents a familiar, classically rich playback sound; Arijit Singh dominates the streaming-era playlists; Karan Aujla brings contemporary Punjabi-pop energy. Booking them together suggests the first phase is about reach across generations and regions.

The structure of a one-day event with multiple stages also points to a high-volume experience: around 15 artists gives organisers room to mix established names with discoveries, rather than relying on one evening’s top ticket.

What fans should do

• Note the early-access window: it opens October 19, 2026 at 11 am IST via a booking app.
• General ticket sales begin October 20, 2026.
• If you want the first shot at seats, do not wait for the final 15-artist list to drop.

An early-access opening one day before general sales is the practical takeaway. Fans who move on October 19 get the first claim on tickets before the remaining artists are announced, which means the most motivated audience sets the opening crowd.

The bigger SRK calendar

The festival announcement arrives as Shah Rukh Khan balances music with his movie slate. He was last seen in Dunki (2023) and will next be seen in Siddharth Anand’s King, which is scheduled for a theatrical release on December 24, 2026, alongside Suhana Khan and an ensemble that includes Deepika Padukone, Rani Mukerji, Abhishek Bachchan, Arshad Warsi and Abhay Verma.

For Bollywood fans, the calendar now has two distinct dates: a December film return and an Abu Dhabi festival in March 2027.

Source: The Times of India