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Amit Paul 24, Shillong, Meghalaya

Indian Idol 3
The disarmingly humble yet determined Amit Paul has been third time lucky. For the first two Indian Idol seasons, he could not make it to the auditions in Kolkata on time. This time around, he registered through an SMS and came down straight to Mumbai. No hitches, and he was finally in. However, though his singing was appreciated by the judges, Paul didn8217;t have an easy race to the final 13. After being voted out in the initial phase, he even forgot his lines mid-way while performing for a wild card comeback. And yet he was back with a bang by popular vote. This college dropout has already put his beautiful hill capital, Shillong, on the national music map. Local leaders across parties have been calling on fellow Meghalayans to vote en masse for him. 8220;It8217;s the biggest compliment to me. I don8217;t see anything wrong in campaigning for regional votes,8221; he says. 8220;But I am sure of getting votes from other parts of the country too.8221;
Paul, who belongs to a family of middle-class businessmen, says, 8220;Of all the music reality shows, I was always keen only on Indian Idol. While its season one was a great hit in the Northeast, the buzz had dipped by season two, but now it8217;s rocking once again.8221; He had spent quite a fortune voting for Abhijeet Sawant and Rahul Vaidya in season one. 8220;Other reality music talent shows might give you a break as a playback singer but Indian Idol also gives you a lot of fame and faster and instant recognition. Even as finalists you become instant rock stars since there is so much focus on each participant and his life story.8221;
Paul, who had discontinued his studies after Class 12 and used to assist his father and uncles in the family garment business apart from doing occasional music shows, has always had a keen interest in Hindi film music. A fan of Yesudas, Bryan Adams, Kishore Kumar and Phil Collins, he says, 8220;While among friends and in school I was exposed to Western music, which is more popular in Shillong, once back home, I would get ample opportunity to tune in to Hindi film music.8221;
Anu Malik has already stated on record that 8216;Amit is Indian Idol 3.8217; Javed Akhtar says listening to Amit makes him wish he had a voice like him. He is poised to go places.

Prashant Tamang 24, Darjeeling, Indian Idol 3
But for his friends Prashant Tamang wouldn8217;t have auditioned for Indian Idol 3. 8220;I used to think mera jaisa singer kitna hoga Kolkata mein aur is sansar mein. Mujhse yeh sab nahin hoga,8221; admits the sepoy. 8220;My friends and colleagues sent SMSes on my behalf and that8217;s how I got to the audition.8221; Yet, once on national TV, his presence has had fans in his hometown Darjeeling and neighbouring Gangtok attack Airtel booths over fears of their SMSes8217; not reaching Mumbai on time when Tamang was last up for elimination. Mention the law and order chaos he8217;s unleashed, and the policeman says, 8220;Though I am aware of the support of my Nepali friends and brothers, mujhe nahin pata mere karan itna hungama mach gaya hai Darjeeling, Sikkim aur Kalimpong mein. I will request them to be calm and hear me well and vote for me only if they genuinely like my performance because only the best should go ahead.8221;
This versatile singer has been performing since his school days in Darjeeling. 8220;But at that time I used to sing only Nepali and school songs, nothing much in Hindi.8221; In 2002, his father expired. So he took up as job in Kolkata Police when 18. Singing took a backseat till he gave a trial performance in an orchestra formed by the Kolkata Police. 8220;I was selected as a singer in the Kolkata Police band in December 2005 and that8217;s when my friends put up my name for Indian Idol8217;s Kolkata auditions on March 21.8221;
Tamang, unlike other contestants, isn8217;t aggressive about a win. 8220;If I become the Indian Idol my Nepali brethren will feel proud of me and I too will feel good for getting Darjeeling to national focus. But if I don8217;t win then I will ask for their forgiveness and will work on what I have learnt. My only regret today is that I had never professionally trained in singing,8221; he says. However, the musical fine-tuning under professional hands and judges has helped Tamang chart his future. He has made plans for a determined go at a rigorous, formal training in music. 8220;Better late than never,8221; he signs off.

SaptaparnA Chakraborty 16 Hailakandi, Assam
Amul Star Voice of India
She had voted generously for Debojit Saha. The combined voting of her family for Debojit through that entire season 8220;would easily have touched 25,000 SMSes8221;. Says Saptaparna Chakraborty, 8220;I had my Class 10 exams during the SaReGaMaPa Challenge 2005 finals. It was really tough to stay away from TV with Debojit being one of the finalists.8221; But his winning the show that night did help Chakraborty edge closure to her ultimate dream of a career in music. The 12th standard student came all the way to Amul Star Voice of India8217;s Lucknow audition after missing the Kolkata auditions. With both her parents having a keen ear for good music, Chakraborty was encouraged and trained in classical music since Class 3. 8220;I completed my Visharad in classical music by Class 9, after which I discontinued professional training as I had to concentrate on my Class 10 finals,8221; says the commerce student, who subsequently honed her talent under her 8216;gurus-at-home,8217; her mother and bua, who8217;s a local radio artist. So why Voice of India? Chakraborty, who had gone to the audition of Zee Bangla8217;s SaReGaMaPa with Debojit as host when informed about the launch of Star Voice of India opted for the latter because of its conceiver Gajendra Singh. 8220;It was Gajji8217;s reputation that drew me to VOI. He was the real driver of SaReGaMaPa.8221;
Saptaparna, had hoped that the seven sister states of the Northeast would back her bid to the top. She says, 8220;Our only drawback is our Hindi accent. Otherwise we are second to none in style and substance.8221; Best-suited for soft romantic numbers, her tender age was another shortcoming: her voice isn8217;t fully mature yet. The judges, however, feel she has a bright future if she resumes her riyaz and dedicates herself to a career in music. Her high point on the show ironically happened in her exit episode where her rendering of Salaam karne ki arzoo Umrao Jaan had its singer and the show8217;s hardest judge to please, Alka Yagnik, give her a perfect 10.