Linkin Park make long-awaited India debut at Lollapalooza Mumbai, draw generations of fans

American rock band Linkin Park made their first-ever live appearance in India with a headline performance at Lollapalooza India 2026, delivering a two-hour set that leaned heavily on nostalgia and long-standing fan favourites.

The concert, held at Mahalaxmi Racecourse on Sunday night, saw thousands of fans chanting for the band moments before they took the stage. The six-member lineup — Mike Shinoda, Emily Armstrong, Brad Delson, Joe Hahn, Dave Farrell and Colin Brittain — opened with a run of defining tracks including Somewhere I Belong, In the End and Heavy Is the Crown, setting the tone for what many in the crowd described as a once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Formed in 1996, Linkin Park played a career-spanning set that included Numb, Crawling, What I’ve Done and The Emptiness Machine. The performance marked a significant milestone for Indian fans, many of whom have followed the band for decades without the chance to see them live.

Addressing the audience mid-set, Shinoda thanked fans for their continued support. “Thank you so much for supporting the band over the years, especially the new music. Thank you for patiently waiting for us and asking for us to be here,” he said, wearing an Assamese gamusa around his neck — a gesture that drew loud cheers from the crowd.

Fans across age groups sang along through the night, with social media quickly filling up with reactions. “On my way back, jumped up and down so much that I can't even lift my legs and can't even walk properly,” one attendee posted on X. Another wrote, “A band that defined our gen, which gave a voice, a reason to scrambled thoughts, confusion and the mental demons. Thanks for the magic.”

Not all responses were entirely positive. A Reddit user comparing the band’s recent shows said the Mumbai performance felt less energetic. “Between Bengaluru and Mumbai/Lollapalooza, the Mumbai one was actually considerably weaker performance. It felt mechanical. Like it was work for them,” the post read.

The Mumbai show followed Linkin Park’s Bengaluru concert, part of their From Zero World Tour. The band had stepped away from live performances after the death of frontman Chester Bennington in 2017, returning to the stage in 2024 with a new vocalist and fresh material.

Day two of Lollapalooza India 2026 also featured performances by Kehlani, LANY, Sammy Virji, Calum Scott, Karsh Kale, and Indian artists Kabeer Kathpalia and Savera Mehta.

For many fans, however, Linkin Park’s Mumbai debut remained the defining moment of the festival — a long-delayed meeting between a band and an audience that had waited years to see them live.