Nov 14, 2026 7:07pm IST
Before Diljit Dosanjh’s Second Performance at Coachella in 2027: Every Indian Who Took The Stage at Indio
Only the lineup’s been announced so far, but the excitement around Diljit Dosanjh’s second coming at Coachella is already at fever-pitch. The Punjabi music superstar first played the Sahara tent at the festival in 2023, becoming the first mainstream Indian star to appear in the lineup. However, India’s tryst with the desert festival held in Indio, California begins as early as 2015 with a Mumbai-born producer called Ritesh D’Souza.
D’Souza, then performing as B.R.E.E.D. alongside Los Angeles-based pianist and vocalist Tara Mae, became the first Indian man to play at Coachella. The electronic act performed at the Do LaB stage, the same year AC/DC, Drake and Jack White were in the lineup. Fresh off the international success of their debut album “Binate,” the B.R.E.E.D. duo shared in interviews that they were picked after being introduced to those producing for the do LaB stage, which promotes rising electronic acts.
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Seven years on, in 2022, Raveena (full name: Raveena Aurora) became the first woman of Indian heritage to perform at Coachella. During that performance in the Mojave tent in 2022, Raveena also performed a rendition of the classic 1971 Bollywood song "Dum Maro Dum" from “Hare Krishna Hare Ram” that went viral at the time. While she tweeted on Apr. 17, 2022: “So wild to me that I’m one of the first Indian women to ever play Coachella…”, she is widely considered the first Indian-heritage female performer at Coachella, a fact the Grammys acknowledged as they announced her as a new member of the Recording Academy’s Class of 2026 earlier this year.
A year later, in 2023, Diljit Dosanjh made everyone in India sit up and take notice as he played the Sahara tent on both Saturdays (Coachella is a two-weekend festival) that year on the same days that BLACKPINK headlined. It was reported at the time that the organizers of the event Goldenvoice termed his inclusion as a “push toward diverse lineups.”
The year after that in 2024, Sid Sriram became the first South Indian artist at the festival, performing at the Gobi tent, and ending his set with Thiruppugazh, Tamil devotional verses to Lord Murugan. At the Sahara stage, AP Dhillon performed in front of a "Justice for Sidhu Moosewala" backdrop and made headlines when he smashed a guitar onstage. He dropped out on the second weekend. Punjabi-Canadian rapper NAV also played the Sahara that year.
The 2025 edition saw rapper Hanumankind, the first Indian hip-hop artist at Coachella, entering the Mojave tent behind a troupe of chenda drummers and ended his set with his biggest hit, “Big Dawgs.” Electronic act Indo Warehouse played the Gobi tent and had dhol drummers playing alongside He closed with "Big Dawgs." Electronic act Indo Warehouse brought dhol drummers to the Gobi tent.
And while Shannon K, daughter of playback singer Kumar Sanu, is reported to have made her Coachella debut, the same year, she doesn’t appear on any of the schedules or lineups. What is true, though, is that she performed at an “ultra-exclusive Coachella kickoff celebration” alongside hiphop act Too$hort. And from all accounts, it is an event that brought together music icons, rising stars, and tastemakers from every corner of the industry. So while she performed at Coachella, it wasn’t at one of the stages.
While 2026 saw no Indians on the list, 2027 has Diljit make a return to Coachella, even as he returns to India November through December for the Aura India Tour.
For Coachella 2027, stage times will be revealed closer to the festival date in April. This means that lesser known acts – including Indian-origin DJs or producers – might still make the cut. Two stages, the Do LaB and Quasar, usually announce their lineups a few weeks before the festival.
Indian and Indian-origin acts at Coachella
- B.R.E.E.D (Ritesh D'Souza with Tara Mae), 2015, Do LaB stage (weekend 1)
- Raveena Aurora, 2022, Mojave tent
- Diljit Dosanjh, 2023, Sahara tent (Saturday, both weekends)
- Sid Sriram, 2024, Gobi tent (Friday)
- AP Dhillon, 2024, Sahara tent (Sunday, weekend 1 only)
- NAV, 2024, Sahara tent (Sunday). He also made guest appearances in 2026 during Young Thug's and Swae Lee's sets.
- Hanumankind, 2025, Mojave tent (Saturday, both weekends)
- Indo Warehouse, 2025, Gobi tent (Friday)
- Diljit Dosanjh (return), 2027, Friday, stage not yet announced
COACHELLA STAGES
Outdoor Theatre: The second-largest open-air stage. It often hosts big evening sets.
Sahara: A huge tent for dance, electronic, K-pop and hip-hop acts.
Mojave: A large tent for indie, alternative and pop acts.
Gobi: A smaller tent for indie and rising artists.
Sonora: A small indoor tent, usually for punk, rock and Latin acts.
Yuma: An air-conditioned, club-style tent for house and techno.
Quasar: An open-air dance stage that started in 2024. It announces its lineup closer to the festival.
Do LaB: An independently curated dance stage with its own lineup, usually announced a few weeks before the festival.
Coachella also added the Bunker in 2026, an immersive audio-visual space. In 2027 it will host Justice's "Blinded By the Lights" show.
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