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\n\tEd Sheeran might be in love with the shape of you, but police in the Indian city of Bengaluru weren\u2019t in love with the sound of him, shutting down a recent street performance from the musician.<\/p>\n
\n\tSheeran, who has been in the midst of a run of dates in India since Jan. 30, found himself in Bengaluru over the weekend, where he was performing two shows at the city\u2019s NICE Grounds. On Sunday (Feb. 9), however, a seemingly-impromptu street performance from the English chart-topper was shut down by local law enforcement, with The Times of India<\/em><\/a> reporting it was due to a lack of requisite permissions.<\/p>\n \n\tIn footage<\/a> of the incident shared to social media, police can be seen<\/a> interrupting Sheeran\u2019s performance of \u201cShape of You\u201d by unplugging his instruments. \u201cWe have permission to be here, but this policeman is shutting it down,\u201d Sheeran can be heard telling the crowd. \u201cSee you later!\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tResponding to the incident, the Church Street and Rest House Association\u2019s president Sanjay Kumar explained that local police were within their right to intervene as they did. \u201cEven abroad, performances require permission,\u201d Kumar explained. \u201cSheeran\u2019s team could have approached us, and we would have arranged a private space in a restaurant or an open venue for Bengaluru to enjoy.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tDespite Sheeran\u2019s claim in videos of the performances, police from Bengaluru\u2019s Cubbon Park denied that permission had been given. \u201cNo one can perform on the footpaths or roads as it causes inconvenience to others,\u201d they explained. \u201cOur team asked them to stop, and when they didn\u2019t comply, the officers at the spot unplugged the mic connection.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tSheeran has since responded to the shuttered performance, taking to his Instagram Stories to again assert<\/a> that permission had<\/em> been arranged. \u201cWe had permission to busk btw, hence us playing in that exact spot, was planned out before, it wasn\u2019t just us randomly turning up,\u201d he wrote. \u201cAll good though. See ya at the show tonight x.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIndeed, Sheeran went ahead with his second performance of the weekend in Bengaluru that same night, with his remaining performances in India scheduled for Feb. 12 in Shillong, and Delhi on Feb. 15. He\u2019ll head to China for six dates later in the month.<\/p>\n \n\tIn December, Sheeran revealed to Variety<\/em><\/a> that <\/em>he had finished<\/a> his forthcoming record, shot two music videos, and was planning to complete two more in 2025 during his travels to India, China and the Middle East. It\u2019s unclear, however, if his axed performance was being filmed for inclusion in a potential video.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n