Ed Sheeran surprised fans with a bilingual performance during the latest leg of his Asia and Europe tour in Mumbai, India.
At the event on Saturday (16 March), held at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse, the “Shape of You” singer invited a special guest to sing a duet alongside him.
Indian singer and actor, Diljit Dosanjh, 40, emerged to perform his hit track “Lover” to over 50,000 thrilled fans in the audience.
But the surprise didn’t end there, as Sheeran joined in by singing the lyrics in Punjabi.
The pair shared the moment on their respective social media pages with Sheeran saying, “Got to bring out Diljit Dosanjh tonight in Mumbai and sing in Punjabi for the first time. I’ve had such an incredible time in India, more to come!”
Dosanjh captioned his Instagram reel with the words, “Brother Singing in Panjabi for the first time” along with flag emojis for both India and the UK.
The reels have cumulatively racked up over 50 million views and nearly 4 million likes in less than 24 hours.
“This is the collab we needed,” wrote delighted fans in response. Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan added, “Global domination”, in a comment which has since garnered over 27,000 likes.
The pair performed a duet to Diljit Dosanjh’s hit song ‘Lover’ with Sheeran singing in Punjabi for the first time
(Getty Images)
Another Instagram user added: “This is just unreal… I’m speechless.”
It is not the first time that “Lemonade” singer Dosanjh, has performed alongside a non-Punjabi speaking musician. Last year, he released a track with “Chandelier” singer, Sia.
The song, called “Hass Has”, featured the Australian delivering some lyrics in Punjabi.
Dosanjh made history last year by becoming the first Punjabi artist to perform at Coachella with fans branding the event “a historic moment”.
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Dosanjh started his music career in 2002 and gained recognition with his 2005 album Smile followed by The Next Level with Yo Yo Honey Singh.
He made his Bollywood debut in 2016 with the film Udta Punjab for which he earned the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut, in addition to a nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor.
In 2020, Dosanjh entered Social 50 chart by Billboard, following the release of his 11th album G.O.A.T.
“A Team” star Sheeran released his seventh studio album, Autumn Variations, in September last year. The album was inspired by divisive composer Edgar Elgar. The musician is continuing the Asia and Europe leg of his “+-=÷x” tour.