UNIFYD's Final Lineup Is Out: Shah Rukh Khan Curates Arijit, Aujla and a Sonu Nigam Special Set
A festival lineup is a sentence. The order of names, the size of the type, the word "special" placed beside a legend: all of it is grammar. Read UNIFYD's final poster that way and it says something quite precise about where Indian popular music stands in 2026.
At the top: Arijit Singh and Karan Aujla. The ballad and the swagger, Bengal and Punjab, the two poles of what the diaspora streams.
Then Jonita, on her own line.
Then a dense middle tier: Shalmali Kholgade, Patiala Mehfil, Simran Choudhary, Nooriyah, Curtain Blue, Tech Panda x Kenzani, Rusha & Blizza, Stick No Bills, BOH!B, Priyanka and Unnayanaa.
And beneath them, set apart: Sonu Nigam, Special Set.
Curated by Shah Rukh Khan.
The essentials
Date: 20 March 2027
Venue: Etihad Live, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi
Format: one day, multiple stages
Produced by: D'YAVOL Live and District, with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi and Miral, in association with Emirates NBD
Tickets: exclusively on the District app; reported prices begin at AED 295 for general access and rise to AED 725 and AED 3,295 for premium categories
The poster went up in mid-October and has been circulating since, shared by artists and friends of the festival alike.
A note on the grammar
The interesting decision is the middle tier. Independent and electronic acts such as Tech Panda x Kenzani, Curtain Blue and Stick No Bills share a line with playback voices and Punjabi stars. That is not how Indian festivals were billed a decade ago, when film music and the independent scene tended to live in separate rooms.
Shah Rukh Khan's name sits near the foot of the poster, which is where a signature goes. It is, in the end, his sentence.
For a closer-to-home date with two of the same headliners, see our guide to Home Festival Goa with Arijit Singh and Karan Aujla.
Frequently asked questions
When is UNIFYD Abu Dhabi?
Saturday, 20 March 2027, at Etihad Live on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
Who is performing at UNIFYD?
Arijit Singh, Karan Aujla, Jonita, Shalmali Kholgade, Patiala Mehfil, Simran Choudhary, Nooriyah, Curtain Blue, Tech Panda x Kenzani, Rusha & Blizza, Stick No Bills, BOH!B, Priyanka, Unnayanaa and a Sonu Nigam special set.
Who curated UNIFYD?
Shah Rukh Khan.
Where can I buy UNIFYD tickets?
Tickets are sold exclusively through the District app. Reported prices start at AED 295 for general access.
Kenneth Hopkins is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of AltBollywood. Indofuturist, posthumanist and unapologetically Indocentric, he describes himself as an epimemeticist, a swaraji, a freakonomist, a lexicographer and a cartochronicler, mapping the ideas, words and quiet shifts that shape Indian entertainment. Follow him on Instagram at @kennethhopkins.
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