Shubhendra Rao said that though he had started an online petition, nothing has changed. Shubhendra Rao said that though he had started an online petition, nothing has changed.

An Indian Classical musician travelling to the US was in for a rude shock when he discovered that his instrument was broken after landing at the New York airport. Shubhendra Rao, who arrived in an Air India flight for a concert in New York, checked-in his sitar along with his other baggage. When he collected his luggage after landing, he found his sitar had developed a big crack across the base.

The musician soon took to social media and accused the air carrier of damaging his sitar. He also shared pictures of his broken instrument and wrote on Facebook saying, “Just arrived in New York to perform at #VedicHeritageInc and this is how my Sitar has arrived.” He went to ask how artists and their art will survive if they are not respected enough.

Read the full post here:

Unfortunately, this was not the first time the musician dealt with such a situation. Last November, a similar incident happened when his sitar was damaged by another airline when he was travelling to Sydney from Delhi. Rao also said that though he had started an online petition, nothing has changed.

The musician, in his lengthy Facebook post, tagged Minister for Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri, Civil Aviation Secretary Pradeep Singh Karola, CMD of Air India Ashwani Lohani and wrote,” #injustice has happened on our own national carrier…”. He also urged authorities to take responsibility so that artists like him don’t suffer.

Netizens were quick to react to Rao’s post on Facebook. Some even shared their similar experiences. Look at some of the reactions:

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