Agartala, Tripura, 11th of June 2026 : BookMyShow, India’s leading live entertainment and culture destination, in collaboration with Assam Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. (ATDC) and EY-Parthenon, unveiled The Assam Blueprint: Turning Live Music Economy into a Tourism Multiplier, a report examining the economic, tourism, workforce and cultural impact of live entertainment in Assam, following Post Malone’s first- ever India solo headline concert in Guwahati.
The BookMyShow, ATDC and EY-Parthenon report positions Assam as an early example of how
strategic ecosystem-building, destination development and long-term investment can transform live
entertainment from a standalone cultural moment into a recurring economic multiplier. It estimates
that a structured pipeline of marquee live entertainment events could generate over ₹700
crore in cumulative economic impact within the state over the next five years.
Highlighting Post Malone’s December 2025 concert as a case study, the BookMyShow, ATDC and EY-
Parthenon report estimates that the event generated ₹43 crore in total economic impact,
including ₹32 crore injected directly into Assam’s economy through attendee spending
and another ₹5 crore in GST revenue. Despite acute airline operational disruptions during the
period, the concert attracted approximately 20,000 attendees, with 53% travelling from
outside Guwahati and arriving from more than 200 cities and towns across India.
The BookMyShow, ATDC and EY-Parthenon report also highlights the broader impact of the event
across tourism, hospitality, transport, retail and local businesses. For every ₹100 spent on a
concert ticket, attendees spent an additional ₹899 on accommodation, travel, dining,
shopping and local services.Hotels in Guwahati reported an approximately 30% increase
in occupancy during the concert weekend, while local transport operators recorded more
than 50% growth in ride demand. Restaurants and cafés saw walk-ins increase by over
33%, while retail businesses reported more than 30% higher footfalls. The concert also
contributed to regional tourism, with visitors exploring destinations such as Kaziranga National
Park, Majuli Island, Kamakhya Temple and Sivasagar, reinforcing Guwahati’s position as a
gateway to the North-East.
The BookMyShow, ATDC and EY-Parthenon report further spotlights the growing importance of the
North-East region in India’s live entertainment landscape. Guwahati recorded a 188% increase in
live-event footfalls in 2025 and hosted 55 ticketed live events during the year. Along with
neighbouring Shillong, the city is emerging as a key destination for large-scale live entertainment
experiences. This shift mirrors a broader trend unfolding across India, where cities are increasingly emerging as hubs for world-class live experiences that generate measurable value across tourism,
hospitality, mobility and local enterprise.
Beyond visitor spending, the Post Malone concert supported significant workforce and business
participation. Approximately 2,500 personnel were mobilised across security, hospitality,
production, logistics and venue management, while local businesses and vendors
contributed across staging, branding, infrastructure, food and beverage, connectivity,
payments and sustainability operations.
The BookMyShow, ATDC and EY-Parthenon report also brings forth several factors supporting
Assam’s growth as a live entertainment destination, including the state’s Concert Tourism Policy, single-
window facilitation through ATDC, infrastructure investments, hospitality expansion and continued
development of local talent and vendor ecosystems.
Over the next five years, BookMyShow envisions Guwahati to go from strength to strength as a regional
live entertainment hub, supported by expanding infrastructure, growing production capabilities and a
sustainable ecosystem capable of generating over ₹700 crore in cumulative economic impact.
Shri Kumar Padmapani Bora, IRS, Managing Director, Assam Tourism Development
Corporation Ltd. (ATDC), said, “For Assam, the concert economy is not just about
entertainment; it is about tourism, culture, youth engagement and economic growth working
together. Our objective is to build a facilitative ecosystem where large events become
repeatable opportunities that bring visitors into the state, create local employment, and
showcase Assam to national and global audiences.”
Naman Pugalia, Chief Business Officer – Live Events, BookMyShow, said, “The next phase
of India’s live entertainment growth will be defined by building entirely new cultural and
entertainment hubs. The North-East represents one of the most compelling opportunities in that
journey, combining a rich musical heritage with a highly engaged audience and a rapidly
evolving ecosystem. The Post Malone concert demonstrated how globally benchmarked live
experiences can generate value far beyond the venue, creating impact across tourism, hospitality,
local enterprise and employment. More importantly, it showed what becomes possible when
government, industry and local stakeholders align behind a shared vision. Assam’s journey offers
a powerful example of how live entertainment can contribute to economic growth, destination-
building and cultural relevance, while creating a blueprint for the future of India’s concert
economy.”
Raghav Anand, Partner and Leader, Media and Entertainment, EY-Parthenon, said, “Live
events have demonstrated a powerful economic multiplier effect, generating meaningful
spending across hospitality, transport, retail and local services. What makes Assam particularly
exemplifying is not just the headline economic impact, but the ecosystem behind it: clear policy
direction, institutional coordination, infrastructure investment and a commitment to measuring
outcomes. When live entertainment is treated as economic infrastructure rather than a one-off
spectacle, it becomes a repeatable engine for tourism, employment and regional growth.”
One of the BookMyShow, ATDC and EY-Parthenon report’s key findings is that successful concert
economies are built not through isolated events, but through sustained investment in ecosystem
readiness. Assam’s emergence as a live entertainment destination has been driven by progressive policy
measures, infrastructure development, hospitality expansion, single-window facilitation through ATDC
and continued investment in local talent and vendor ecosystems. These efforts are helping transform
the state into a rapidly growing entertainment corridor within India’s live experience economy.
The momentum is already evident. Following Post Malone’s landmark performance in Guwahati,
Assam is now set to welcome legendary rock band Guns N’ Roses on November 17, 2026, further
reinforcing the state’s growing stature on the global touring map. As India’s experience economy
expands beyond traditional metros, Assam’s journey demonstrates how live entertainment can drive
tourism, employment and economic growth, while offering a blueprint for emerging destinations across
the country.
Quotes from the BookMyShow, ATDC and EY-Parthenon report:
Ashish Hemrajani, Founder & CEO, BookMyShow said, “When we signed the MOU with
Assam Tourism, we were not just planning events; we were designing an ecosystem. Live
entertainment, done at scale, is one of the most powerful economic multipliers a state can invest
in. It fills hotel rooms, activates local businesses and creates skilled employment overnight. Our
five-year roadmap with Assam is built on that premise – to transform the state into a recurring
destination for world-class live experiences, anchoring the North-East as India’s next great
entertainment corridor.”
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