25 Musicians And Comedians Answer The Question: "Will You Still Perform At High Spirits?"

Upamanyu chose to boycott all future shows at High Spirits, adding “this kind of behaviour is totally not surprising”.

The singer said that he won’t be performing at the venue, "as of now".

Six days after the original claims originated, Gill finally responded to a tweet by saying that he will not be performing there, and will share others’ stories.

In a Twitter thread, the comedian wrote about how she knew of such behaviour since 2016, and refused to take shows there henceforth. She added her personal experiences, and how other comedians didn’t believe her claims. “Every female comedian barely sits in the green room back stage coz the environment is HOSTILE”, she wrote.

Having performed multiple times in the past, Talwar was one of the first comedians to boycott the venue. “When I used to perform there, the comics never had much of an idea about Khodu or what he did because we would just show up from Bombay in a car, do our set, and leave the same night. So I had no idea that this was going on”, said Talwar while speaking to BuzzFeed. “I'm never going to do a show there again, and I put that out on my social media the moment I found out, as did some other comics”, he added.

Grover advocated for the boycott of High Spirits from both performers and patrons alike.

“I'm really disappointed to hear about everything coming out from there. Didn't want to believe it, but it's really beyond denial, and the stories are really disturbing”, said Banatwalla while speaking to BuzzFeed. “I'm hoping to see an apology from the venue and the people concerned. I can't see myself performing there in the current climate.”

He also adds, “It's been a lovely performance space over the years, and at the risk of sounding idealistic, I hope that over time, everyone involved there can accept what's gone wrong, apologise, correct their behaviour, and then maybe someday we can start afresh.”

The pop duo performed at the venue on August 12. “The stories are terrible”, said a statement from the band to BuzzFeed and added, “We will no longer be performing at High Spirits.”

One of the biggest artist management firms in the country, OML manages everyone from AIB to Ankur Tewari, per their website. Their artists performed at High Spirits regularly, but will not do so in the future, a spokesperson from OML stated.

‘’In light of recent developments, OML will not be holding any future shows at High Spirits’’, said Rishabh Nair from OML. ‘’We also do not have any contractual obligations to do so.’’

Another regular at High Spirits, Warren Mendonsa said he will not be performing there anymore.

The band did not respond to BuzzFeed's request for comment.

“This behavior can’t be defended”, Kamra wrote on Twitter. “Khodu needs councilling and reform [sic]”, he added and said he won't be performing at the venue anymore.

The Ghalat Family frontman has been vocal about many issues, and refused to perform at High Spirits or any related events until the issue has been fixed.

D'souza did not respond to BuzzFeed's request for comment

The rock band from Chennai performed at High Spirits on the 28th of July. They recently posted on Facebook saying, "Khodu has been nothing but good and respectable to us these past years, yet, in NO way do we justify his deeds. Every individual is entitled to a voice and now that we’ve heard those voices of the victims we want light to be shed on those involved. Whether they decide to be unapologetic or reforming we want Khodu to address this directly, The F16s will not perform at the High Spirits in the interim."

They had a gig scheduled on October 20, but was called off. “We were really upset by the allegations, and we were left with no choice but to call it off”, said Marti Bharath of Sapta. “We really love the crowd at Pune, so we’re hoping to return soon.” Shortly after, they put out this statement on their Facebook page.

When asked whether they will be boycotting High Spirits, the band’s frontman Raman Negi replied, “Goes without saying!”

The post-rockers’ lead singer Udippan Samrah said in an AMA held on their Instagram that they will not be perfoming there for the time being. “It’s really unfortunate what has happened”, said Samrah. “For now, we will not be performing there.”

The instrumental rock band were scheduled to open for Skyharbor at High Spirits on October 22, but refused. “In the light of recent events we will not be performing at High Spirits this Sunday”, said the band confirmed this to BuzzFeed before posting a statement on their Facebook page.

The comedian stated his disappointment towards the incidents in a statement to BuzzFeed.

“I have performed many times at High Spirits and always looked forward to shows there. It was one of the better gigs around comedy-wise”, said Dasgupta. “But that doesn’t matter anymore, after the recent revelations. It’s damn upsetting for me as a spectator, so I can’t even begin to imagine what the women who came out with their stories are going through.” He adds, “I wont be taking up shows there, I think that’s the least I can do. And really hope things change soon.”

The Indian-American prog-metal band was scheduled to perform at the venue on October 22, but called the gig off after the allegations surfaced. The band confirmed this to BuzzFeed shortly before posting this on their Facebook page.

One of the headliners at the last show before the allegations surfaced, Sethia said told BuzzFeed that he doesn’t know Irani too well, and only met him after his performance while leaving the venue. He also added that he shall be keeping away from High Spirits for a while.

Right in the eye of the storm, the Bengaluru band performed at High Spirits on the night of October 13. However, they refuse to perform at the venue again.

‘’The horror stories coming out about High Spirits are truly depressing. Another sign of the pathetic times we are facing as a society’’, they said in a statement to BuzzFeed. “A place that doesn't respect women is no workplace, period.’’

The duo did not respond to BuzzFeed's request for comment.