For some fans, getting to Diljit Dosanjh's concert at New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru (JLN) Stadium on Friday was an exercise in planning, booking tickets weeks in advance and making their way to the venue. But for many, it was a matter of turning up at the stadium and hoping that someone, somewhere, had a spare ticket.At Gate 14 of the JLN stadium, where ticket collection booths had been set up along the road, hundreds of people gathered around the barricades, looking out for anyone with an extra ticket to sell.

They came from different age groups and economic backgrounds. Some had been unable to book tickets on the BookMyShow app, while others had failed to find one through unofficial resale groups on WhatsApp.With little else to go by, many just walked around, listened in on conversations to gauge if there was an extra ticket available, hoping to strike a deal.India Today Digital spotted one man standing outside the venue with both hands raised, holding up tickets and announcing that they were on sale, much like a vegetable vendor calling out to customers.

It was like an informal marketplace, with fans negotiating prices and sellers trying to find buyers before the concert began. Among those waiting for an opportunity were two Jamia Millia Islamia students, Wahib and Tanzeem.

Neither had a ticket, and the amount they could spend was considerably lower than the going price for the better seating categories. But their wait outside the stadium eventually paid off.The two came across a woman, who requested anonymity, who had two extra Gold-section tickets.

The tickets had cost more than Rs 9,000 each, excluding taxes, taking the combined price to around Rs 20,000. She and a friend were soon surrounded by people looking to buy the extra tickets they had, with several trying to bargain.

The woman initially held firm on the price. But with the concert still some time away and no takers at Rs 20,000, the asking price came down to Rs 10,000 for both tickets, roughly the cost of one.

Even then, prospective buyers continued to negotiate.Wahib and Tanzeem waited for their turn before making an offer of their own."We are students, and all we have is Rs 4,000 (combined). We want to buy the tickets, but this is all we can give," they told her.For the two students, Rs 4,000 was a considerable amount to spend on a concert.

Students living away from home in a city like Delhi have to budget for rent, food, travel and other everyday expenses.Another student from Delhi University, who was also scrambling for tickets outside the stadium, said that he had barely any money to pay for the concert, but he really wanted to see Diljit Dosanjh. He added, "For a hosteller, Rs 1,000 can go a long way towards covering a week's expenses.

How can we buy tickets worth Rs 10,000?!"There were other buyers who could have offered more, and the seller might have fetched a higher price by waiting longer. But she decided to sell both tickets to the students for Rs 4,000. "Students hain, inka bhala hoga (They're students.

Let them have a good time)," she said. The two had found their way into the concert, while the seller ensured that her spare tickets did not go unused.Their experience was one of several small, unexpected transactions playing out outside the stadium on Friday evening.

Some people had extra passes because friends or family members had dropped out at the last minute. Others had acquired more tickets than they needed through different sources and were looking to sell them.The scene was reminiscent of the informal ticket markets outside IPL matches and single-screen cinema halls of an earlier era.By the time Diljit Dosanjh took the stage, some of those who had arrived without tickets had managed to find a way inside.

For Wahib and Tanzeem, the evening had begun with a hopeful wait outside Gate 14, and ended with two Gold-section tickets, bought for a fraction of their original price, and a chance to see the Punjabi star perform.- Ends