Airtel Super Singer

Airtel Super Singer - Thamizhagathin Brahmaandakuralukkana Thedal ("the search for the greatest voice of Tamil Nadu") is a reality TV singing competition in the Tamil language that is sponsored by the mobile service provider Bharti Airtel. The show is televised in India on Vijay TV, and worldwide through partner broadcasting networks. The show, together with its spin-off editions such as Airtel Super Singer Junior, are part of Vijay TV's Super Singer TV series.

The program, which debuted in 2006, seeks to discover the best playback recording voice and singing talent in Tamil Nadu through a series of statewide auditions. Selected contestants are required to participate in a number of competition rounds, often based on a theme for a given week, and aim to be selected to perform in the show's grand finale each season.

Winners and finalists of the competition have been offered chances to sing a song in upcoming Tamil movies,^[1][2][3] and othe prizes such as sums of money, gold, and real estate property.

Season synopsis

Season 1

The first season premiered on 28 April 2006, with a series of episodes which telecast auditions for the show.^[4] Auditions were held across the state of Tamil Nadu in the cities of Coimbatore, Chennai, and Madurai. Performances by auditioning contestants were judged by singers S. P. Sailaja, Jency, Malaysia Vasudevan, Sirkazhi Sivachidambaram Mahathi, and music director D. Imman.^[5]

The show was hosted by playback singer Chinmayi. Later stages of the competition were held at a specially designed studio set, and performances were judged by a panel of permanent judges consisting of playback singers Anuradha Sriram, Srinivas, and Unnikrishnan.^[4] Contestants were eliminated during the competition, and finalists received special training from voice expert Ananth Vaidyanathan in the final stages of the competition.

Season 1 title winner Nikhil Mathew was formally introduced as a playback singer after he sang the song "Enadhuyire" in the Tamil film Bheema for music director, Harris Jayaraj.^[6][7] Season 1 runner up and viewer's choice, Anitha V. (now known as Anitha Karthikeyan) was formally introduced as a playback singer after she sang the song "Vaada Vaada" in the Tamil film Marudhamalai for music director D. Imman.^[6][8]

Season 2

Auditions for the 2008 show started on June 27, 2008 and judges shortlisted candidates from auditions in three cities Chennai, Coimbatore and Tiruchirapalli. Sujatha, Unnikrishnan and Srinivas were the judges of the event. Ajeesh won the competition and was chosen by Yuvan Shankar Raja to sing the song Idhu Varai for the soundtrack of Tamil film, Goa.^[9][10]

Season 3

The auditions were held in various parts of Tamil Nadu, and were judged by singers including S. P. Sailaja, Nithyasree Mahadevan, Unni Menon, Sowmya, Harish Raghavendra, Pop Shalini, Mahathi, and Malgudi Shubha. Sujatha, Unnikrishnan and Srinivas continued to be the permanent judges for the second consecutive season.

Saicharan won the competition,^[11] and was chosen by A. R. Rahman and D. Imman to sing in the films Godfather, Manam Kothi Paravai, and Saattai.

Season 4

The auditions were held in various parts of Tamil Nadu, and were judged by singers including S. P. Sailaja, Nithyasree Mahadevan, Unni Menon, Sowmya, Devan Ekambaram, Pop Shalini, Mahathi, Malgudi Shubha and Ananth Vaidyanathan. Sujatha, Unnikrishnan and Srinivas continued to be the permanent judges for the third consecutive season. The devotional round held during this season was unable to match the previous season's devotional round.

Diwakar won the competition,^[12][13][14] and was chosen by music directors D. Imman, Vivek-Mervin, and Kannan to sing in the films Panjumittai, Vadacurry, and Kalkandu.

References