Indian Idol Contestants Swaroop and Meghna. Photos: Bollywoodbilli.com
Indian Idol, like most of the pop music shows around the world has seen budding singers from different backgrounds. But for the first time ever in Indian television an almost blind girl and an illiterate folk musician have made it to the first phase of the Gala round of the show.
They are among the top 13 contestants aiming to become the Indian Idol 2010. The prize – a Ten million rupees worth contract with Sony. Not just that, the winner gets to sing for a forthcoming Bollywood Yash Raj blockbuster.
Meghna Kumar became blind at the age of 11 and that’s when she decided to devote her life to music. While Meghna learnt Indian classical music and became adept at the stringed Tanpura and - unusually for a girl – the Tabla, it was largely due to her father’s dedication that she became proficient enough to pursue a college degree course in music.
“My father has always been by my side helping me read through his eyes”
When she was a child, her father read out her schoolbooks to help her learn the lessons. Today he reads her the lyrics she has to memorize for the show. While Meghna has grown up listening to Bollywood music and has a fair idea of the songs, Swaroop Khan’s knowledge is limited to folk music.
A semi-literate teenager from Rajasthan, Swaroop has lived all his life in a mud and straw hut in a desert village. He was taken out of school at fifth grade to join the family business – as a folk musician playing for the landed families of Jaisalmer earning just around Rs200 or US$5 a show. He can’t remember when he learnt his first notes.
“In our family, when a child is born, the first thing it does is not to cry but to sing.”
His village clothes and trademark large red turban turban set him apart from the other contestants. But it’s the quality of his voice and his skill at improvisation that really gets people’s attention. During the interview he playfully makes a song around my name to show me how easily it comes to him.
The finals are due in a few weeks and no doubt all the contestants are eyeing the big prize. The dreams of these two people however have a particular poignancy:
Swaroop dreams of winning a purse that would allow him to build a real, pucca house for his family. And Meghna who has only 15 percent vision now has been told that by the end of this year, she will be totally blind – for her, winning the title of Indian Idol could add some light to her approaching darkness.
on May 19th, 2010 at 5:58 pm
This season looks promising. Lets see what happens. Nice story.
on May 19th, 2010 at 8:54 pm
I am kind of a person who shuffles more between sports channels. But one day i had to go through one full episode of drama, artificial suspense and other nonsense of these reality shows because of my wicked room-mates.
I was appalled at the way leading singers and music directors were doing dramas.
these shows are simply there to gain more TRP’s and advertisement cash. what has happened to the ex-indian idols???
they get job as partner-hosts in next edition?. seriously, as if the sas-bahu soap tortures are not enough, we get this on prime-time TV.
on May 20th, 2010 at 11:14 am
I wish I could follow the show, but being outside India, it’s a little difficult. There have been blind contestants on regional musical talent shows before as well, like the popular Star Singer series in Malayalam and Tamil and it’s heartening to see the national media now follow the lead.
Nice article. would have loved to hear a few lines from the song he made around your name though!
on May 20th, 2010 at 10:15 pm
Hey..nice story ! Swaroop and Meghna are already stars for me..they sing really well ! Enjoying this season of Indian Idol.
on May 21st, 2010 at 12:39 am
It seems this year Indian Idol is about real India. Although Anu Malik & Sunidhi look like a bunch of drameybaaz but still music prevails in the show… Thanx to the author to tell the real picture of the show