Ali Sethi at Coachella 2023 was supposed to be a proud moment for Pakistan, as Pakistani musicians and artists don’t usually get to perform on such international platforms. Though the fans were excited to get Pakistani representation, as soon as the performance was aired, blunt opinions regarding Ali Sethi’s performance started roaming on social media.
From his singing to his outfits, netizens are really not satisfied. Where Western media platforms such as Washington Post are covering Sethi’s performance as a major success, Pakistanis are busy debating on how he could have done better.
Twiterrati Thinks Sethi Was Performing For The Wrong Audience
The first of the many objections people have is that the audience was not really interested. As most of them didn’t know the language, the crowd didn’t really enjoy the performance. Though Pasoori became a global sensation and one of the most-played songs on Spotify, netizens still believe that performing a Punjabi song in front of foreigners was not a sane decision.
However, if we see in general, music was never prone to the barriers of language. The same audience was seen grooving to other Punjabi songs, so the fact that the crowd was dead might not be because of the language barrier.
Some people have also concluded that Ali Sethi was unable to engage the audience, primarily because the tone of his songs is mellow, and hyping the audience requires bass-boosted music.
Also, the fact that he was paired with Raja Kumari didn’t sit well with people. According to them, putting two culturally different people on one stage to was a bad idea.
Netizens Are Not Really Happy With Sethi’s Outfits
Along with his performance, his outfits were severely criticized. Netizens were looking forward to Pakostani’s representation, and Sethi’s outfits greatly disappointed them.
Quite disappointed by Ali Sethi though. Would've been nice if he took some Pakistani culture with him instead of wearing what he wore? Completely butchered Pasoori too. I've seen Shae Gill perform live and she does the full song on her own SO WELL.
— اسریٰ (@freakonomist5) April 18, 2023
Also what are those moves? pic.twitter.com/vPhUrMSi69
People were trolling him for wearing Jama, saying it seemed like an Anarkali frock. The debate on his outfits created two groups, one who was very much disappointed and the other who was defending it.
Many people came to the rescue explaining how Sethi was actually trying to highlight the Mughal culture through his outfit.
People from the field of fashion design and South Asian history were seen explaining that men wore such outfits in the past, which is a significant part of our culture. The fact that experimenting with looks landed him in hot waters seemed ironic to many people, and they were seen explaining the history and culture of the Mughals through references.
Just saw a post where Ali Sethi is being brutally trolled for his outfit. “Aurat ban rha hai” “Khwajasira community ko represent kr rha hai” and so much more. Pehli bat that none of these are derogatory! Dusri bat, the comment section shows how limited our reading & pic.twitter.com/yFp6L6FO4v
— Moeez (@thisismoeez) April 25, 2023
Not Everyone Has Lost Hope
Though there are some really cruel and harsh opinions on Sethi’s performance and outfits, people are still on his side. Netizens were seen mentioning his masterpieces, including “Chan Kithan Guzari Hai Raat,” and reminding others that he is not a bad singer and one misconducted performance doesn’t make him less talented.
While everyone was discussing how Ali Sethi ruined Pakistan’s image on an international platform, some people were happy that the Pakistani music industry got this chance. And though with baby steps, one day, the Pakistani music industry will get the recognition it deserves.
What are your thoughts on Ali Sethi’s performance at Coachella 2023? Let me know in the comments.
