Now cut to the present times . Can you name five musical competitions on television ? Chances are you can name ten ! But how many do you actually follow ? As one channel starts with one , another one starts with another in the race for TRPs . And just as you heave a sigh of relief that one season is over , the same show returns with a season for children . More than music , it ’ s the melodrama and the sob story of many a contestant ( with the judges coming on stage to wipe their tears !) these shows focus on . With too many talks and advertisements , chances are that in 15 minutes , you would probably see one performance .
Not to forget the Indian versions of international shows like ‘ American Idol ’, ‘ The Voice ’ and ‘ The X-Factor ’ ( senior , junior etc ). Then there are competitions like ‘ Jo Jeeta Wohi Superstar ’ that pit the winners and participants of different musical shows together . Phew !
The latest one that started recently was ‘ The Stage ’, that is more or less the same concept wise except that the participants sing English songs and the winners are chosen by the judges . Nevertheless , it ’ s a refreshing change from the reality show staple that everyone is so used to and gives a platform to those interested in Western music .
The good old ‘ Sa Re Ga Ma Pa ’ is still around and has many takers . But somehow it lacks the innocence and freshness of the 90s , which is lost in the game of TRPs and commercialization . Like many of its contemporaries , it has various editions like ‘ Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge ’, ‘ Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li ’ l Champs ’ and so on leaving one confused regarding which is what .
So many shows and so many platforms for upcoming talent . It ’ s a good thing right ? Well , yes it is but how many of the winners are actually able to break all barriers and reach the top ? How many of the participants do we actually remember once the show gets over ? Also , is it a good thing for tiny tots to be pushed on stage at such a tender age ?
If you look at all the participants right from the time these shows began , you would notice that most have faded into oblivion . In such circumstances , the only way out for these artistes is Bollywood and that ’ s the bandwagon that many talented singers like Anushka Manchanda ( from ‘ Viva ’), Neeti Mohan ( from ‘ Aasma ’) and Arijit Singh ( runner-up of ‘ Fame Gurukul ’) have jumped on .
While playback singing in Bollywood isn ’ t an easy nut to crack , making it big as independent musician is equally hard . With a tough world out there , many talented artistes are struggling to get opportunities . And as the world gets caught in the ‘ web ’ of social media ( quite literally at that ), this struggle only worsens . There are too many channels of entertainment and the audience ’ s attention is diverted . So if they stay out of sight , they are out of mind .
However , there are always two sides to a coin . Technology has also opened a world of opportunities . Although some probably didn ’ t get the fame that they desired , they have carved a niche for themselves and gained hundreds of followers , thanks to Facebook pages , music blogs and YouTube channels .
Yes , the world is a much smaller place today thanks to the click of a button . However , we do long for those good old days where everyone in the colony watched the same programme and discussed the results the next day . Some even called each other to find out the results in case they missed it without Twitter or Facebook spilling the beans . Those were the days my friend , weren ’ t they ?
The Score Magazine highonscore . com
17