The latest edition of Indian Idol, which is scheduled to start on June 1, is eagerly been awaited by viewers across the nation. But history has shown that the voting process, which comes into the..
SOULIN HINGMANG, resident of Darjeeling, like other locals played an important role in making Prashant Tamang the Indian Idol winner in its third season in 2007. The entire town had come to life and they were eager to make him the Indian Idol winner. Hingmang says, “During the finals I spent around Rs 500 to vote for Prashant Tamang as the Indian Idol Winner”. He was just a student then. Voting online, through SMS or calling the desired number has been a popular feature in deciding the winner of Indian Idol. Winners such as Abhijeet Sawant, Sandeep Acharya, and Sourabhee Debbarma, etc., have been declared victorious through the voting process.
Such kind of voting process does not take place in the initial elimination rounds of the competition, as it is the judges who decide the fate of a singer's progression. So, if one has reached the latter stages of the competition, it is understood that the judges have seen something in the contestants that they have given them the green signal for the next round. But, when the competition moves into the
business end, voting procedures become a norm, as viewers, by then, already have their favourites on their mind. So, they would go all out to support their favourite contestants.
Saiam Hasan, a classical singer, does not like voting for such competitions. He says, “People generally vote for regionalism and not for the singing talent of the contestant”. But we can discount people who vote for the talent. Though, the numbers may be very less. The question of regionalism has been a major factor in deciding the winner. Marilyn Varte, a JNU student, supported Sourabhee Debbarma during the fourth edition of the Indian Idol. She says, “As she was the representative of the North east, I decided to vote for her”. She was the eventual winner of the fourth edition of the Indian Idol.
So, it is not necessary that the voting process helps in judging the best contestant. If we look at the first Indian Idol competition, some claimed Rahul Vaidya was better than Abhijeet Sawant, who was the first Indian Idol winner. The same can be said for Amit Paul too, who looked a far better singer than Prashant Tamang, who was declared as the winner in the third season.
Irrespective of the accuracy associated with the voting process, it is the show, Indian Idol, and the telecom companies, that earn good revenue. Lakhs and lakhs of people vote for their favourite contestants, hoping to see them as eventual winners.
