Chris Martin thanks India for ‘forgiving’ Britain’s colonialism at gig

"Thanks for forgiving us for all of the bad things Great Britain has done."

The band were playing Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium while on their Music of Spheres world tour.

“This is our fourth visit to India, and the second time to play. First time we played a long show and we could not have asked for a better audience. Thank you for coming today everybody," the 47-year-old singer told the crowd.

He continued: “Thank you for welcoming us even though we are from Great Britain. Thanks for forgiving us for all of the bad things Great Britain has done.”

Naturally, the clip was shared online, and the reaction to Martin's comments has been mixed.

"Chris healing intergenerational trauma with a mic, stage and some tunes," one person wrote in response.

"CEO of fixing what he didn’t break," a second put, while a third penned: "Pls free concert next time as reparations."

A fourth wrote: "What in the white guilt did I just watch?"

"That was totally unnecessary stunt..... Ur a singer just entertain them that's it," a fifth said.

“Ok, but when did we forgive them,” another put.

Britain has never formally apologised to India for its rule over the country from 1858 until 1947.

During the period known as the British Raj, India was subject to devastation.

Famine and poverty were common across the country, and many laws were introduced against the will of people native to India.