unanimity over talent hunt contest winner not possible:sonu nigam

Mumbai, Jan 4 (UNI) Playback singer Sonu Nigam has ruled out the possibility of a unanimous choice of a winner in game or talent shows on television channels.

Sonu, one of the judges in the 'Sa Re Ga Ma Pa little champs' music talent show on Zee TV was responding to queries from mediapersons on Thursday over controversies that have surfaced in recent reality shows on the manner in which the winners were declared through SMS voting.

He felt that there ought to be difference of opinion on the choice of winners. ''Shah Rukh Khan is the Bollywood superstar. But, he is not the favourite of all movie goers. Some like other top actors. It is the same with selecting winners of the reality shows,'' he pointed out.

Besides, he said it is difficult to put an end to such controversies. ''The world is never perfect. Even as judges, we have tried to maintain the credibility of the show and not indulge in mock fights to raise the TRPs. Such gimmicks are harmful to the main objective of encouraging young talent,'' he felt.

Speaking about 'Sa Re Ga Ma Pa', Sonu said he and his co-judge noted singer Suresh Wadkar have always tried to discourage regional sentiments and sympathy factor for SMS voting.

''Audience should vote for a particular participant based on his or her talent and not because of any regional affiliation. We also do not allow the participants to cry and gain sympathy,'' he said.

Sonu said the 'Sa Re Ga Ma Pa' brand on Zee TV was 13 years old.

''This show pioneered singing talent hunt on television and such talent shows are patrons of art which have encouraged the young to take to music in a big way,'' he added.

Sonu, who shot to fame and later big time league as a playback singer by hosting the show in 1995, said judging the 'little champs season'' on the show was like re-visiting his childhood and youth.

Tarun Mehra, Zee TV business head who was present on the occasion said the present season of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa litle champs has reached an exciting milestone with nine kids vying for the title.

''We are proud that the show involving the children has met with stupendous response from the audience that cuts across barriers of age, demographics and culture. With each child delivering stellar performances episode after episode, there is no predicting who could emerge victorious. We are headed for a nail biting finale and it is time for the public to ensure that their favourite contestant makes it to the top,'' he added.

When asked about transparency in SMS voting, Mr Mehra said the channel has always announced the number of votes each finalist has bagged. Expressing satisfaction that the show has remained on the top of the charts despite formidable competition, Mr Mehra said the audience will lap up only good content.

The nine finalists are - Tanmay Chaturvedi (Lucknow), Rohit Shyam Raut (Nagpur), Vibhor Parashar (Delhi), Vasundhara Raturi (Delhi), Rohanpreet Singh (Patiala), Aamir Hafiz(Bhopal), Vaishali Raikwar (Bhopal), Anamika Chaudhari (Assam), Smita Nandi (Tripura).

UNI MR SR SV AS1626