What is, however, interesting in Season 13 of Indian Idol is the tsunami of talent from the birthplace of R D Burman, Manna De, Bappi Lahiri and, indeed, Alka Yagnik. About half of more than a dozen contestants who have reached Level 3 are from Kolkata, compared to only one from any other city.
The season’s first participant, Anushka, from the first city of Rabindra Sangeet, set the tempo by belting out R D Burman’s rough ‘Mehbooba Mehbooba’ timbre and Asha Bhonsle’s silky texture in ‘O Meri Jaan’ from the 1970 movie, The Train.
Call it an RD redux of Indian Idol 5 where, 12 years ago, Bhoomi Trivedi sang RD’s ‘I Love You’ from the 1971 movie, Hare Rama Hare Krishna, switching as seamlessly between Usha (Uthup) and Asha as she did between lower and higher octaves. The sheer diversity of polished vocalists in the 2022 show, such as an unassuming Rishi from Ayodhya, makes the job of the judges both enviable and unenviable at the same time.
So, when the lilting sound from your TV this evening feels like shondesh melting in your mouth, feel free to sing along in a mishti and/or husky voice.