Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Hero Honda – Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 is an Indian Television singing competition that premiered on 4 May 2007 and ran until 13 October 2007. It is the 2nd instalment of the "Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge" series and the 4th public voting competition in the "Sa Re Ga Ma Pa" series. Chronologically, the show is preceded by Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs Hindi was an Indian televised children's singing competition that aired on Zee TV. The judges were Abhijeet, Alka Yagnik, and Bappi Lahiri, who was a judge of the earlier seasons, not of the third one.-First season:...

, however systematically it is followed by Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005

Hero Honda Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005 was a reality series, an extension of the famous Sa Re Ga Ma Pa programme that was first aired in 1995 on Zee TV...

. The show features two of the previous mentors, Himesh Reshammiya

Himesh Reshammiya

Himesh Reshammiya is an Indian music director, composer, singer and actor.-Music and film career:Himesh Reshammiya was born in Bhavnagar, Gujarat to Vipin Reshammiya and Madhu Reshammiya. He had his first success as a music director of the 2003 film, Tere Naam...

and Ismail Darbar

Ismail Darbar

Ismail Darbar is an Indian composer and violinist, a popular name in Bollywood.-Career:Ismail Darbar is from Surat, Gujarat. He worked for several years as a session violinist for leading music directors Laxmikant Pyarelal, Kalyanji Anandji, Bappi Lahiri, Rajesh Roshan, Anand-Milind,...

, and two new mentors to the Challenge series, Bappi Lahiri

Bappi Lahiri

Bappi Lahiri or Alokesh Lahiri , born 27 November 1952, is a music director in the Hindi film industry. He pioneered the use of disco music in Indian cinema and sang some of his own compositions. He was popular in the 1980s with films like Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal and Sharaabi among others.-Early...

and Vishal-Shekhar

Vishal-Shekhar

Vishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...

. Shaan

Shaan (singer)

Shaan , is an Indian playback singer, and television host. He hosted the shows Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs, Star Voice of India and "Star Voice of India 2"...

did not return to host and was replaced by Aditya Narayan

Aditya Narayan

Aditya Narayan Jha , born 6 August 1987, in Mumbai, India, commonly known as Aditya Narayan, is an actor, television host and music composer. He is the only child of Indian playback singer Udit Narayan and Deepa Narayan.-Early life:...

, son of playback singer

Playback singer

A playback singer is a singer whose singing is prerecorded for use in movies. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras, while the actual singer does not appear on screen.-South Asia:...

, Udit Narayan

Udit Narayan

-Career:King of melody, Udit Narayan Jha was born on 1 December, 1955 in a village called Bhardaha in the Saptari district , Nepal. His father was Hare Krishna Jha and his mother was Bhuwaneshwari Devi.Narayan studied at P.B...

.

The new logo is significantly different from the "Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005

Hero Honda Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005 was a reality series, an extension of the famous Sa Re Ga Ma Pa programme that was first aired in 1995 on Zee TV...

" logo featuring headphones

Headphones

Headphones are a pair of small loudspeakers, or less commonly a single speaker, held close to a user's ears and connected to a signal source such as an audio amplifier, radio, CD player or portable Media Player. They are also known as stereophones, headsets or, colloquially, cans. The in-ear...

on the globe

Globe

A globe is a three-dimensional scale model of Earth or other spheroid celestial body such as a planet, star, or moon...

to represent itself as an international competition, instead of a previous logo consisting of a portrayal of a duet singing.

On 21 July, the show had topped the television ratings in India for the episode featuring Salman Khan

Salman Khan

Salman Khan is an Indian film actor. He has starred in more than 80 Hindi films.Khan, who made his acting debut with a minor role in the drama Biwi Ho To Aisi with Rekha in a lead role, had his first commercial success with the blockbuster Maine Pyar Kiya , for which he won a Filmfare Award for...

according to Television Audience Measurement.

On 13 October at the Grand Finale, the show broke voting records with a collection of 10,61,44,354 (10.6 crores or 106 million

Million

One million or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian millione , from mille, "thousand", plus the augmentative suffix -one.In scientific notation, it is written as or just 106...

) votes worldwide from 181 countries. In the final tally Aneek Dhar

Aneek Dhar

Aneek Dhar is an Indian singer who won the regional spin off singing competition, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Bangla, and won Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 at the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 Grand Finale on 13 October 2007.Aneek Dhar from Kolkata is a renowned Indian...

was declared the winner with 3,65,89,134 votes, Raja Hasan

Raja Hasan

Raja Hasan Sagar is an Indian playback singer. He was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 who achieved 1st runner up in the competition attaining 3,52,40,963 votes in the final, losing to Aneek Dhar.-Early years:...

as the 1st runner-up with 3,52,40,963 votes and Amanat Ali

Amanat Ali

Amanat Ali was one of the finalists on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007. He placed third in the competition and garnered 334,314,257 votes in the final two weeks. Choreographer Farah Khan and Indian ghazal singer Jagjit Singh heralded him as a "great discovery" and remarked that he "goes beyond Sa...

as the 2nd runner-up with 3,43,14,257 votes.

Concept

Unlike other singing competitions, the concept of this season of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa was to discover singing talent. However, this time the show had also targeted innocent hidden talent outside India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. With Zee TV

Zee TV

Zee TV is an India-based satellite television channel owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, which broadcasts various programmes in Hindi and other regional languages of India. Broadcasting is also present in various nations of South Asia, Europe, the Middle East,...

being broadcast internationally via satellite, it was an attempt that promised more viewers of the show and definite success for Indians only.

This time round, the idea was to conduct auditions all over the world and select the top singers from different regions who would then compete against each other on stage in front of hundreds of thousands of television viewers. The initial rounds were judged by notable artistes from the Indian music industry as well as the mentors who subsequently selected the top 14 finalists. Currently, the finalists are performing in each episode with the goal of being the winner of the season which all depends on public voting.
1st= Aneek 2nd= Raja 3rd= Amanat

Zee TV

Zee TV

's SRGMP 2007 is also in competition with the 3rd season of Sony Entertainment Television

Sony Entertainment Television (India)

This article is about the SET channel in India. For the Indian version broadcasted worldwide, see Sony Entertainment Television Asia.Sony Entertainment Television, or SET, is a Hindi-language based general entertainment television channel in India. It was launched in October 1996 and is owned by...

's Indian Idol which also premiered on the same date and Star Plus

STAR Plus

STAR Plus is a Hindi language general entertainment television channel based in India. The channel is part of the STAR TV network's bouquet of channels...

's Star Voice of India which premiered three weeks later. But the TRP Rating of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 is much more than these other shows.

Additionally Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Hungama, a behind-the-scenes show similar to American Idol Extra

American Idol Extra

American Idol Extra was a television show that was shown on the Fox Reality Channel and Star! and billed as "the show that picks up right where American Idol leaves off"...

, also starting airing, corresponding with the start of the finals. It airs on Zee Muzic on Fridays and Saturdays at 11:30 pm (UTC +5:30).

The production of each episode is filmed 5 days earlier than the broadcast date.

Regional auditions phase

The auditions were held in the following cities in India

India

each between the hours of 10:00 am to 2:00 pm:

Indore
Indore
Indore is one of the major city in India, the largest city and commercial center of the state of Madhya Pradesh in central India. Indore is located 190 km west of the state capital Bhopal. According to the 2011 Indian census, Indore city has a population of 1,960,631...

: Ravindra Natya Grih, 1, RNT Mar – 13 March
Ludhiana: Satluj Club – 13 March
Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....

: RoRavindra Manch, Ram Nivas Baug – 14 March
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad also known as Karnavati is the largest city in Gujarat, India. It is the former capital of Gujarat and is also the judicial capital of Gujarat as the Gujarat High Court has its seat in Ahmedabad...

: Dinesh Hall, Ashram Road, Navrangpura – 15 March
Guwahati
Guwahati
Guwahati, Pragjyotishpura in ancient Assam formerly known as Gauhati is a metropolis,the largest city of Assam in India and ancient urban area in North East India, with a population of 963,429. It is also the largest metropolitan area in north-eastern India...

: Prachees Kingdom – 16 March
Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....

: Gandhi Bhawan – 19 March
Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

: Andheri Sports Complex
Andheri Sports Complex
The Andheri Sports Complex is a multi-purpose facility located on Veera Desai Road in Andheri West, Mumbai, India . Its local name is "Shahaji Raje Krida Sankul"....

, Veera Desai Road
Veera Desai Road
Veera Desai Road is a part of Andheri - the largest of Mumbai's suburbs in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is also linked to some famous landmarks of Andheri i.e...

, Andheri West – 19 March
New Delhi: S.G.T.B. Khalsa College, North Campus – 25 March
Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

: Salt Lake Stadium – 27 March

The Auditions were held in the following countries internationally:

America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

: judged by Bappi Lahiri
Bappi Lahiri
Bappi Lahiri or Alokesh Lahiri , born 27 November 1952, is a music director in the Hindi film industry. He pioneered the use of disco music in Indian cinema and sang some of his own compositions. He was popular in the 1980s with films like Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal and Sharaabi among others.-Early...
Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...

, U.A.E.: judged by Ismail Darbar
Ismail Darbar
Ismail Darbar is an Indian composer and violinist, a popular name in Bollywood.-Career:Ismail Darbar is from Surat, Gujarat. He worked for several years as a session violinist for leading music directors Laxmikant Pyarelal, Kalyanji Anandji, Bappi Lahiri, Rajesh Roshan, Anand-Milind,...
Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...

: judged by Vishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...
London, England: judged by Himesh Reshammiya
Himesh Reshammiya
Himesh Reshammiya is an Indian music director, composer, singer and actor.-Music and film career:Himesh Reshammiya was born in Bhavnagar, Gujarat to Vipin Reshammiya and Madhu Reshammiya. He had his first success as a music director of the 2003 film, Tere Naam...
Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

: judged by Ghulam Ali
Ghulam Ali
USTAAD Ghulam Ali is a Pakistani ghazal singer of the Patiala gharana. He is not to be confused with the Indian singer Bade Ghulam Ali Khan or Chhote Ghulam Ali, who is another Pakistani singer in the Qual Bachon Gharana....

– 30 March

Auditioning contestants were required to provide proof that their age was between 18 and 28 on March 2007 (born between March 1979 and March 1989).

Structure of auditions

Auditions for the show were held in the cities shown above. As shown in the pilot episode, the 2007 process was very chaotic, especially in India: contestants waited in long lines and large crowds and people jumped fences and lines to get a chance at auditioning. Although for the first time, the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa series did not begin the show with an episode of the audition clips, the majority of them were rejected leaving only 16 final contestants chosen from India that performed on the pilot

Gharana selection

The Gharana (literally "House") is utilised similarly to a House system

House system

The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...

used in schools and colleges. The contestants of the gharanas have been chosen by the mentors themselves.

Two of the four previous gharanas that were featured on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005

Hero Honda Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005 was a reality series, an extension of the famous Sa Re Ga Ma Pa programme that was first aired in 1995 on Zee TV...

have been replaced – Aadesh Shrivastava

Aadesh Shrivastava

Aadesh Shrivastava is an Indian composer and singer. Over the course of his career, he has composed the music for over 100 Hindi films. His wife Vijeta Pandit is a former Bollywood actress and the sister of the composer duo Jatin Lalit...

's Jai Ho and Jatin-Lalit's Dum have now been replaced with "Josh" and "Hit Squad". The following list represents the initial 32 contestants who were chosen by the mentors and in the order they were introduced. But the most talented among them was Mauli Dave

Mauli Dave

Mauli Dave was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 and was also recently crowned Miss Teen India Texas 2007.Dave is also a professional dancer who was a finalist in Sony Entertainment Television's "Boogie Woogie Chalo America" in 2003....

Yalgaar ^{- Ismail DarbarIsmail Darbar
Ismail Darbar is an Indian composer and violinist, a popular name in Bollywood.-Career:Ismail Darbar is from Surat, Gujarat. He worked for several years as a session violinist for leading music directors Laxmikant Pyarelal, Kalyanji Anandji, Bappi Lahiri, Rajesh Roshan, Anand-Milind,...}

Rimi Dhar from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India -Eliminated on Episode 21: 13 July
Jyoti Mishra from Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

, India – Eliminated on Episode 14: 16 June
Desh Gaurav Singh from Pratapgarh
Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh
Pratapgarh also called Bela, Bela Pratapgarh, Partapgarh or Partabgarh, is a city and nagar panchayat of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Pratapgarh district, part of the Faizabad Division...

, Uttar Pradesh, India – Eliminated on Episode 6: 19 May
Wasi Efandi from Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...

, Pakistan – Eliminated on Episode 15: 22 June
Brijesh Schandaliya from Basti, Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

, India – Eliminated on Episode 12: 9 June
Poonam Yadav from Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....

, Uttar Pradesh, India – 3rd runner-up. Eliminated on Episode 43: 28 September
Amanat Ali from Faisalabad
Faisalabad
Faisalabad , formerly known as Lyallpur, is the third largest metropolis in Pakistan, the second largest in the province of Punjab after Lahore, and a major industrial center in the heart of Pakistan. Before the foundation of the city in 1880, the area was very thinly populated. The population has...

, Pakistan – Mega finalist and 2nd runner-up.And will be the winner also because of his dashing singing.

Rock ^{- Himesh ReshammiyaHimesh Reshammiya
Himesh Reshammiya is an Indian music director, composer, singer and actor.-Music and film career:Himesh Reshammiya was born in Bhavnagar, Gujarat to Vipin Reshammiya and Madhu Reshammiya. He had his first success as a music director of the 2003 film, Tere Naam...}

Joy Chakraborty from Lumding
Lumding
Lumding is a city and a municipal board in Nagaon district in the Indian state of Assam. It is the regional divisional headquarters of the North East Frontier Railway, a big important junction and is famous for the Barak Valley Express which passes through scenic routes.It is the biggest Railway...

, Assam, India – Eliminated on Episode 29: 10 August
Amrita Chatterjee from Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

, West Bengal, India – Eliminated on Episode 6: 19 May
Nirupama Dey from Agartala, Tripura, India – Eliminated on Episode 25: 27 July
Shreshta Banerjee from Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

, West Bengal, India – Eliminated on Episode 15: 22 June
Yogendra Pathak from London, England – Eliminated on Episode 4: 12 May
Tushar Sinha from Silchar, Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...

, India – Eliminated on Episode 10: 2 June
Anita Bhatt from Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....

, Uttar Pradesh, India – Eliminated on Episode 12: 9 June
Mussarat Abbas From Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...

, Pakistan - Eliminated on Episode 39: 14 September
Aneek Dhar
Aneek Dhar
Aneek Dhar is an Indian singer who won the regional spin off singing competition, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Bangla, and won Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 at the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 Grand Finale on 13 October 2007.Aneek Dhar from Kolkata is a renowned Indian...

from Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

, West Bengal, India -WINNER

Josh ^{- Bappi LahiriBappi Lahiri
Bappi Lahiri or Alokesh Lahiri , born 27 November 1952, is a music director in the Hindi film industry. He pioneered the use of disco music in Indian cinema and sang some of his own compositions. He was popular in the 1980s with films like Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal and Sharaabi among others.-Early...}

Reecha Tripaathi from Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, British Columbia, Canada – Eliminated on Episode 16: 23 June
Sunil Kumar from Sunder Nagar, Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...

, India – Eliminated on Episode 16: 23 June
Koyal Chaterjee from Dhanbad, Jharkhand
Jharkhand
Jharkhand is a state in eastern India. It was carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of Bihar to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the west, Orissa to the south, and West Bengal to the east...

, India – Eliminated on Episode 4: 12 May
Sikandar Ali from Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...

, Pakistan – Eliminated on Episode 14: 16 June
Abhijeet Kosambi (Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Marathi winner) from Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India Eliminated on Episode 27: 3 August
Mauli Dave
Mauli Dave
Mauli Dave was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 and was also recently crowned Miss Teen India Texas 2007.Dave is also a professional dancer who was a finalist in Sony Entertainment Television's "Boogie Woogie Chalo America" in 2003....

from Houston, United States – Eliminated on Episode 37: 7 September
Sumedha Karmahe from Rajnandgaon
Rajnandgaon
Rajnandgaon is the primary town of Rajnandgaon District, in the state of Chhattisgarh, India. The population of the city is 143,727 . It came into existence on 26th Jan' 1973, by way of division of district Durg. The District headquarters of Rajnandgaon is on the Bombay - Howrah line of...

, Chhattisgarh, India – 4th Runner-up. Eliminated on Episode 41: 21 September

Hit Squad ^{- Vishal-ShekharVishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...}

Apurva Shah from Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

, India Eliminated on Episode 23: 20 July
Saaberi Bhattacharya from Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

, West Bengal, India Eliminated on Episode 16: 23 June
Meghna Verma from Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...

, Maharashtra, India – Eliminated on Episode 10: 2 June
Sarika Singh from Indore
Indore
Indore is one of the major city in India, the largest city and commercial center of the state of Madhya Pradesh in central India. Indore is located 190 km west of the state capital Bhopal. According to the 2011 Indian census, Indore city has a population of 1,960,631...

, Madhya Pradesh, India – Eliminated on Episode 8: 26 May
Imran Aslam from Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...

, South Africa – Eliminated on Episode 8: 26 May
Sumana Ganguly from Toronto, Canada – Eliminated on Episode 15: 22 June
Junaid Sheikh from Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...

, PakistanVoted Out: 24 August
Harpreet Deol from Ludhiana, Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...

, India – Eliminated On Episode 15: 22 June; voted back in the show during the "Bramhastra" week from the Josh Gharana. Finally Eliminated on Episode 35: 31 August
Raja Hassan from Bikaner, Rajasthan, India – Eliminated On Episode 16: 23 June; voted back in the show during the "Bramhastra" week. Mega finalist and 1st runner-up.

Eklavya

In addition, there was another Gharana called the Eklavya Gharana – it was a "reserved force" of eight singers. The exact purpose of this Gharana was not mentioned during the initial days of the show but soon it was determined that it basically prevented a Gharana from getting eliminated in the initial rounds. The contestants in this Eklavya Gharana performed on the 2nd episode of the show. Later on, each week two contestants from this Gharana were chosen to join a mentor's Gharana after that mentor has had any of his contestants eliminated the previous week.

Sumana Ganguly from Toronto, Canada – transferred to Hit Squad (15 June)
Sumedha Karmahe from Rajnandgaon
Rajnandgaon
Rajnandgaon is the primary town of Rajnandgaon District, in the state of Chhattisgarh, India. The population of the city is 143,727 . It came into existence on 26th Jan' 1973, by way of division of district Durg. The District headquarters of Rajnandgaon is on the Bombay - Howrah line of...

, Chhattisgarh, India – transferred to Josh Gharana (18 May)
Tushar Sinha from India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

– transferred to Rock Gharana (18 May)
Anita Bhatt from Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....

, India – transferred to Rock Gharana (25 May)
Raja Hassan from Bikaner, Rajasthan, India – transferred to Hit-Squad Gharana (15 June)
Brijesh Schandaliya from Basti, Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

, India – transferred to Yalgaar Gharana (25 May)

The only two contestants who never appeared in the competition after their performance on 5 May 2007 were:

Sayan Chaudhary from Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

, India
Binoy Mohanty from Raurkela, Orissa, India

Episode themes

Just as was done in previous Sa Re Ga Ma Pa

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa

From 1999 till 2001, the show was hosted by the brothers Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan.After that, Shaan started hosting the show. Later, the name "Sa Re Ga Ma Pa" became known as the "brand name" of the series and completely changed the concept of the show to include public interaction through...

shows, the idea of themes is featured to determine the contestants' versatility and ability to sing different genres.

Episode 01 – Week 1 (Fri, 4 May) – Introduction to Indian Contestants in Gharanas
Episode 02 – Week 1 (Sat, 5 May) – Introduction to Foreign Contestants in Gharanas
Episode 03 – Week 2 (Fri, 11 May) – Songs of R.D. Burman and Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle is an Indian singer. She is one of the best-known and most highly-regarded Hindi playback singers in India, although she has a wider repertoire. Bhosle's career started in 1943 and has spanned over six decades. She has done playback singing for over a thousand Bollywood movies...
Episode 04 – Week 2 (Sat, 12 May) – Modern Hit Songs
Episode 05 – Week 3 (Fri, 18 May) – Guru's Choice
Episode 06 – Week 3 (Sat, 19 May) – Contestant’s Choice
Episode 07 – Week 4 (Fri, 25 May) – Songs of Bappi Lahiri
Bappi Lahiri
Bappi Lahiri or Alokesh Lahiri , born 27 November 1952, is a music director in the Hindi film industry. He pioneered the use of disco music in Indian cinema and sang some of his own compositions. He was popular in the 1980s with films like Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal and Sharaabi among others.-Early...
Episode 08 – Week 4 (Sat, 26 May) – Contestant’s Choice
Episode 09 – Week 5 (Fri, 1 Jun) – Songs of Ismail Darbar
Ismail Darbar
Ismail Darbar is an Indian composer and violinist, a popular name in Bollywood.-Career:Ismail Darbar is from Surat, Gujarat. He worked for several years as a session violinist for leading music directors Laxmikant Pyarelal, Kalyanji Anandji, Bappi Lahiri, Rajesh Roshan, Anand-Milind,...
Episode 10 – Week 5 (Sat, 2 Jun) – Songs of Raj Kapoor
Raj Kapoor
Known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor Rāj Kapūr, 14 December 1924 – 2 June 1988), also known as The Show-Man, was an Indian film actor, producer and director of Hindi cinema. He was the winner of nine Filmfare Awards, while his films Awaara and Boot Polish were nominated for the Palme d'Or at the...
Episode 11 – Week 6 (Fri, 8 Jun) – Songs of Himesh Reshammiya
Himesh Reshammiya
Himesh Reshammiya is an Indian music director, composer, singer and actor.-Music and film career:Himesh Reshammiya was born in Bhavnagar, Gujarat to Vipin Reshammiya and Madhu Reshammiya. He had his first success as a music director of the 2003 film, Tere Naam...
Episode 12 – Week 6 (Sat, 9 Jun) – Songs of Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan is a Hindi cinema music composer.-Personal life:Rajesh Roshan is the son of Hindi film composer Roshan and younger brother of film director and actor Rakesh Roshan...
Episode 13 – Week 7 (Fri, 15 Jun) – Songs of Vishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...
Episode 14 – Week 7 (Sat, 16 Jun) – Contestant’s Choice
Episode 15 – Week 8 (Fri, 22 Jun) – Contestant’s Choice (Chakravyuh Phase)
Episode 16 – Week 8 (Sat, 23 Jun) – Contestant’s Choice (Chakravyuh Phase)
Episode 17 – Week 9 (Fri, 29 Jun) – Contestant’s Choice (Bramhastra Phase)
Episode 18 – Week 9 (Sat, 30 Jun) – Punjabi
Punjabi language
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...

or Punjabi Flavor Songs (Bramhastra Phase)
Episode 19 – Week 10 (Fri, 6 Jul) – Contestant’s Choice (Agnipariksha Phase)
Episode 20 – Week 10 (Sat, 7 Jul) – Contestant’s Choice (Agnipariksha Phase)
Episode 21 – Week 11 (Fri, 13 Jul) – Old Romantic Songs
Episode 22 – Week 11 (Sat, 14 Jul) – Rain/Monsoon
Monsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...

Songs
Episode 23 – Week 12 (Fri, 20 Jul) – Club Songs
Episode 24 – Week 12 (Sat, 21 Jul) – Songs of Salman Khan
Salman Khan
Salman Khan is an Indian film actor. He has starred in more than 80 Hindi films.Khan, who made his acting debut with a minor role in the drama Biwi Ho To Aisi with Rekha in a lead role, had his first commercial success with the blockbuster Maine Pyar Kiya , for which he won a Filmfare Award for...
Episode 25 – Week 13 (Fri, 27 Jul) – Superhits of 60's and 70's
Episode 26 – Week 13 (Sat, 28 Jul) – Songs of the Contestants' Favorite Singer
Episode 27 – Week 14 (Fri, 3 Aug) – Sad Songs
Episode 28 – Week 14 (Sat, 4 Aug) – Friendship Day Special
Episode 29 – Week 15 (Fri, 10 Aug) – Universal Hits
Episode 30 – Week 15 (Sat, 11 Aug) – Independence Day
Independence Day (India)
The Independence Day of India is celebrated on the fifteenth of August to commemorate its independence from British rule and its birth as a sovereign nation in 1947. The day is a national holiday in India. All over the country, flag-hoisting ceremonies are conducted by the local administration in...

Special
Episode 31 – Week 16 (Fri, 17 Aug) – Dance Songs
Episode 32 – Week 16 (Sat, 18 Aug) – Qawwali
Qawwali
Qawwali is a form of Sufi devotional music popular in South Asia, particularly in the Punjab and Sindh regions of Pakistan, Hyderabad, Delhi, and other parts of northern India...
Episode 33 – Week 17 (Fri, 24 Aug) – New Romantic Songs
Episode 34 – Week 17 (Sat, 25 Aug) – Songs of Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar is an Indian film actor, producer and martial artist who has appeared in over a hundred Hindi films. When he began his acting career in the 1990s, he primarily starred in action films and was particularly known for his appearances in feature films commonly called the "Khiladi series",...
Episode 35 – Week 18 (Fri, 31 Aug) – TV Stars' Choice Songs
Episode 36 – Week 18 (Sat, 1 Sep) – Folk Songs
Episode 37 – Week 19 (Fri, 7 Sep) – Comedy Songs
Episode 38 – Week 19 (Sat, 8 Sep) – Songs of the Contestants' Favorite Actor
Episode 39 – Week 20 (Fri, 14 Sep) – Black and White Films'
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...

Songs
Episode 40 – Week 20 (Sat, 15 Sep) – Wedding Songs
Episode 41 – Week 21 (Fri, 21 Sep) – Stage Songs
Episode 42 – Week 21 (Sat, 22 Sep) – Round 1: (Raj) Kapoor Family Songs | Round 2: Songs of Kareena Kapoor
Kareena Kapoor
Kareena Kapoor , often informally referred to as Bebo, is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. During her career, Kapoor has received six Filmfare Awards, among nine nominations, and has been noted for her performances in a range of film genres; these include her work from contemporary...
Episode 43 – Week 22 (Fri, 28 Sep) – Round 1: Ghazals | Round 2: Semi Classical Songs
Episode 44 – Week 22 (Sat, 29 Sep) – Round 1: Songs of Om Shanti Om | Round 2: Song Choice of Shah Rukh Khan
Episode 45 – Week 23 (Fri, 5 Oct) – Round 1: Violin Songs | Round 2: Guitar Songs | Round 3: Songs to express yourself (Nokia Express)
Episode 46 – Week 23 (Sat, 6 Oct) – Round 1: White Feather Films' Songs | Round 2: White Feather Films' Emotional Songs | Round 3: Song for one of the cast/crew of Dus Kahaniyan

"Mahagurus"

The Mahagurus

Guru

A guru is one who is regarded as having great knowledge, wisdom, and authority in a certain area, and who uses it to guide others . Other forms of manifestation of this principle can include parents, school teachers, non-human objects and even one's own intellectual discipline, if the...

appeared as judges in the semi-finals. They "commented" and decided who the top contestants were on the performance episodes and also decided who got eliminated on the "elimination day" during the initial rounds.

Episode 1 & 2 – Week 1 (4 May & May 5) – None
Episode 3 & 4 – Week 2 (11 May & May 12) – Ghulam Ali
Ghulam Ali
USTAAD Ghulam Ali is a Pakistani ghazal singer of the Patiala gharana. He is not to be confused with the Indian singer Bade Ghulam Ali Khan or Chhote Ghulam Ali, who is another Pakistani singer in the Qual Bachon Gharana....

and Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle is an Indian singer. She is one of the best-known and most highly-regarded Hindi playback singers in India, although she has a wider repertoire. Bhosle's career started in 1943 and has spanned over six decades. She has done playback singing for over a thousand Bollywood movies...
Episode 5 & 6 – Week 3 (18 May & May 19) – Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle is an Indian singer. She is one of the best-known and most highly-regarded Hindi playback singers in India, although she has a wider repertoire. Bhosle's career started in 1943 and has spanned over six decades. She has done playback singing for over a thousand Bollywood movies...
Episode 7 & 8 – Week 4 (25 May & May 26) – Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle is an Indian singer. She is one of the best-known and most highly-regarded Hindi playback singers in India, although she has a wider repertoire. Bhosle's career started in 1943 and has spanned over six decades. She has done playback singing for over a thousand Bollywood movies...
Episode 9 & 10 – Week 5 (1 June & June 2) – Mohammed Zahur Khayyam
Mohammed Zahur Khayyam
Mohammed Zahur "Khayyam" Hashmi, better known as Khayyam, is an Indian music composer whose career spanned four decades .He has won three Filmfare Awards for Best Music in 1977 for Kabhi Kabhie and 1982 for Umrao Jaan, and a lifetime achievement award in 2010...

and Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan is a Hindi cinema music composer.-Personal life:Rajesh Roshan is the son of Hindi film composer Roshan and younger brother of film director and actor Rakesh Roshan...
Episode 11 & 12 – Week 6 (8 June & June 9) – Mohammed Zahur Khayyam
Mohammed Zahur Khayyam
Mohammed Zahur "Khayyam" Hashmi, better known as Khayyam, is an Indian music composer whose career spanned four decades .He has won three Filmfare Awards for Best Music in 1977 for Kabhi Kabhie and 1982 for Umrao Jaan, and a lifetime achievement award in 2010...

and Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan is a Hindi cinema music composer.-Personal life:Rajesh Roshan is the son of Hindi film composer Roshan and younger brother of film director and actor Rakesh Roshan...
Episode 13 & 14 – Week 7 (15 June & June 16) – Mohammed Zahur Khayyam
Mohammed Zahur Khayyam
Mohammed Zahur "Khayyam" Hashmi, better known as Khayyam, is an Indian music composer whose career spanned four decades .He has won three Filmfare Awards for Best Music in 1977 for Kabhi Kabhie and 1982 for Umrao Jaan, and a lifetime achievement award in 2010...

and Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan
Rajesh Roshan is a Hindi cinema music composer.-Personal life:Rajesh Roshan is the son of Hindi film composer Roshan and younger brother of film director and actor Rakesh Roshan...

(Roshan was not present on 16 Jun)
Episode 15 & 16 – Week 8 (22 June & June 23) – Anandji Virji Shah
Anandji Virji Shah
Anandji Virji Shah was a famous Indian musician. Together with his brother he formed the Kalyanji-Anandji duo, and won the 1975 Filmfare Award for Best Music Director, for Kora Kagaz.- Birth and early life :...

Bramhastra

The "Bramhastra" round ran through Week 9. This round basically allowed the public to bring an eliminated contestant back into the competition. The gharana who received the Bramhastra got to choose two eliminated contestants for the finals (Agnipariksha). Vishal-Shekhar

Vishal-Shekhar

Vishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...

received this Bramhastra and they chose 6 contestants. The six contestants were:

Sarika Singh (Hit Squad)
Sunil Kumar (Josh)
Raja Hassan (Hit Squad)
Saaberi Bhattacharya (Hit Squad)
Harpreet Deol (Hit Squad)
Desh Gaurav Singh (Yalgaar)

Of the six contestants that were chosen by Vishal-Shekhar, the two contestants with most votes from the public and subsequently elected and brought back into the competition were:

Raja Hassan with 31% of the votes
Harpreet Deol with 20% of the votes

Top 14 Finalists

The 14 finalists were announced at the end of the episode broadcast on 29 June 2007. This year, Aneek Dhar and Abhijeet Kosambi who were winners of the regional spinoffs, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Bangla and Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Marathi, got direct entry as finalists. Their direct entry into the finals caused some controversy Ismail Darbar had the courage to point it out. However, after HR pleaded with Ismail, the issue dissolved. See the Aneek-Abhijit controversy section for further details.

These are the names of the top fourteen finalists listed in order.

Raja Hassan- 1st (Hit-It Gharana)
Amanat Ali
Amanat Ali
Amanat Ali was one of the finalists on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007. He placed third in the competition and garnered 334,314,257 votes in the final two weeks. Choreographer Farah Khan and Indian ghazal singer Jagjit Singh heralded him as a "great discovery" and remarked that he "goes beyond Sa...

- 2nd Runner Up (Yalgaar Gharana)

Eliminated Contestants:

Poonam Yadav
Poonam Yadav
Suraj Yadav was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 who hails from Machli Mohalla near Sadar Bazar in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. Yadav was eliminated on 28 September and attained 4th place in the competition with public votes.-Early years:Poonam comes from an underprivileged family of...

- (Yalgaar Gharana)
Sumedha Karmahe- (Josh Gharana)
Mussarat Abbas
Mussarat Abbas
Mussarat Abbas is a Pakistani singer and was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 in which he attained 6th place with public votes.-Early years:...

- (Rock Gharana)
Mauli Dave
Mauli Dave
Mauli Dave was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 and was also recently crowned Miss Teen India Texas 2007.Dave is also a professional dancer who was a finalist in Sony Entertainment Television's "Boogie Woogie Chalo America" in 2003....

- (Josh Gharana)
Harpreet Deol
Harpreet Deol
Harpreet Deol was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007. Deol was initially eliminated on 22 June in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 but was voted back by the public along with Raja Hasan. Later, he was eliminated on 31 August attaining 8th place with public votes...

- (Hit-It Gharana)
Junaid Sheikh- (Hit-It Gharana)
Joy Chakraborty- (Rock Gharana)
Abhijeet Kosambi
Abhijeet Kosambi
Abhijeet Kosambi was the winner of the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Marathi singing contest and was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 achieving 11th place with public votes. His brother Prasenjit Kosambi appeared on the show Indian Idol 4 in 2008, where he finished in the 7th position...

- (Josh Gharana)
Nirupama Dey- (Rock Gharana)
Apurva Shah- (Hit-It Gharana)
Rimi Dhar- (Yalgaar Gharana)

Celebrity Guests

Week 9 (29 June) – Director Anil Sharma
Anil Sharma
-Biography:He made his directional debut with Shradhanjali with Raakhee Gulzar. He had directed several unsuccessful and unnoticed films in the early 1980s before he started also to produce films with Elaan-E-Jung which was also directed by him and became the first production film of his to become...

and Sunny Deol
Sunny Deol
Sunny Deol often credited as "Action King of Bollywood" is an Indian film actor, producer and director. Deol was born to Bollywood actor Dharmendra. He has won two National Film Awards and two Filmfare Awards. He went to England to study acting...
Week 11 (14 July) – Shamita Shetty
Shamita Shetty
Shamita Shetty is an Indian actress. She is the younger sister of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty.- Early life :Shamita is the second and youngest daughter of Surendra and Sunanda Shetty...

and Dia Mirza
Dia Mirza
Dia Mirza Handrich nicknamed Dee and more popularly known as Dia Mirza, is a Indian model and actress who appears in Bollywood films...
Week 12 (21 July) – Salman Khan
Salman Khan
Salman Khan is an Indian film actor. He has starred in more than 80 Hindi films.Khan, who made his acting debut with a minor role in the drama Biwi Ho To Aisi with Rekha in a lead role, had his first commercial success with the blockbuster Maine Pyar Kiya , for which he won a Filmfare Award for...

and Lara Dutta
Lara Dutta
Lara Dutta Bhupathi is an Indian actress, UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador, and former Miss Universe.-Early life:Dutta was born in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh to a Punjabi father and an Anglo-Indian mother. Her father is Wing Commander L.K. Dutta and her mother is Jennifer Dutta...
Week 13 (27 July) – Ritesh Deshmukh and Anubhav Sinha
Anubhav Sinha
Anubhav Sinha is an Indian film director known for his work in Tum Bin and Shahrukh Khan starrer Ra.One.-Biography:...
Week 13 (28 July) – Vidya Balan
Vidya Balan
Vidya Balan is an Indian actress, who appears in Hindi films. After graduating with a degree in sociology, she started her career starring in music videos, television shows and commercials, before appearing in feature films....

and Sajid Khan
Sajid Khan
Sajid Khan is a former Indian actor. He is the adopted son of Indian film producer Mehboob Khan, founder of Mehboob Studios, in India.-Career:...
Week 14 (4 August) – Fardeen Khan
Fardeen Khan
Fardeen Khan is an Indian Bollywood actor.-Early life:Fardeen Khan was born to actor turned director Feroz Khan and mother Sundari. Grandson of Sadiq Ali Khan and Fatima Khan. He is the nephew of actors Sanjay Khan and Akbar Khan. He is the cousin of Suzanne Khan and actor Zayed Khan. He lived in...
Week 15 (11 August) – Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev Ramlal Nikhanj , better known as Kapil Dev, is a former Indian cricketer. He captained the Indian cricket team which won the 1983 Cricket World Cup...
Week 17 (25 August) – Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar is an Indian film actor, producer and martial artist who has appeared in over a hundred Hindi films. When he began his acting career in the 1990s, he primarily starred in action films and was particularly known for his appearances in feature films commonly called the "Khiladi series",...
Week 18 (1 September) – Daler Mehndi
Daler Mehndi
Daler Mehndi , born August 18, 1967, is an Indian Bhangra pop singer.Mehndi was a student of traditional Punjabi music and his first album broke sales records in India. Since 1995 he has recorded several highly successful albums in India, and also sung as a playback singer for several Hindi movies...

and Lalu Prasad Yadav
Lalu Prasad Yadav
Lalu Prasad Yadav is an Indian politician from Bihar. He was the Minister of Railways from 2004 to 2009 in the ruling United Progressive Alliance government, and the President of the Rashtriya Janata Dal political party...
Week 19 (7 September) – Aashish Chaudhary
Aashish Chaudhary
Aashish Chaudhary is a former Indian model and an actor who appears in Bollywood films. He was first noticed in the action movie, Qayamat in 2003. He then appeared in movies like Girlfriend, Shaadi Ka Laddoo, Fight Club and Teesri Aankh...

and Asrani
Asrani
Govardhan Asrani , popularly known simply as Asrani, is an actor in Indian films whose Bollywood career has spanned over 35 years. His wife Manju Bansal is an actress.-Early life:...
Week 20 (15 September) – Tusshar Kapoor
Tusshar Kapoor
Tusshar Kapoor is an Indian actor. He is the son of Bollywood actor Jeetendra and Shobha Kapoor and brother of Ekta Kapoor. He studied at the University of Michigan and graduated with a BBA from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business.Tushar made his debut with Mujhe kuch kehna hai alongside...

, Rajpal Yadav
Rajpal Yadav
Rajpal Yadav is an Indian film actor, known for his comedy oriented roles.-Early life and education:Rajpal Yadav was born and brought up in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, where he received his education.He did his college from Sardar Patel Hindu Inter College, Shahjahanpur.He played in Shahjahanpur...

and Kunal Khemu
Week 21 (22 September) – Kareena Kapoor
Kareena Kapoor
Kareena Kapoor , often informally referred to as Bebo, is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. During her career, Kapoor has received six Filmfare Awards, among nine nominations, and has been noted for her performances in a range of film genres; these include her work from contemporary...
Week 22 (28 September) – Pandit Jasraj
Pandit Jasraj
Pandit Jasraj is an Indian classical vocalist. He is the foremost exponent of the Mewati Gharana of Hindustani classical music.-Early life:Jasraj was born in Hisar, Haryana in an orthodox brahmin family to Pandit Motiramji, a classical exponent. His family is well known for singing in the Mewati...

and Jagjit Singh
Week 22 (29 September) – Farah Khan
Farah Khan
Farah Khan is an Indian film director and choreographer. She is best known for her choreographical work in numerous Bollywood films. Khan has choreographed dance routines for more than a hundred songs in over 80 Hindi films. Khan has since become a noted Hindi film director as well...

, Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone is an Indian actress and a former model. She appears mostly in Hindi as well as Tamil and Kannada language films. Born to Badminton player Prakash Padukone, she chose to become an actress and not pursue a career in sports.Padukone made her acting debut in the 2006 Kannada film...

and Shreyas Talpade
Shreyas Talpade
-Early life:Talpade was born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, in a Marathi family. He attended Shree Ram Welfare Society's High School in Andheri-West. He is married to Deepti Talpade. Shreyas met his wife Deepti when he went to her college as a celebrity...
Week 23 (5 October) – Adnan Sami
Adnan Sami
Adnan Sami is a British-born Pakistani-Indian- Canadian singer, musician, pianist, actor and composer of Pakistani origin. He currently holds Canadian citizenship and works and lives in Mumbai, India...
Week 23 (6 October) – Cast of Dus Kahaniyan (22 guests!)
Week 24 (13 October) (Finale) – Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar is an Indian film actor, producer and martial artist who has appeared in over a hundred Hindi films. When he began his acting career in the 1990s, he primarily starred in action films and was particularly known for his appearances in feature films commonly called the "Khiladi series",...

, Vidya Balan
Vidya Balan
Vidya Balan is an Indian actress, who appears in Hindi films. After graduating with a degree in sociology, she started her career starring in music videos, television shows and commercials, before appearing in feature films....

and Dia Mirza
Dia Mirza
Dia Mirza Handrich nicknamed Dee and more popularly known as Dia Mirza, is a Indian model and actress who appears in Bollywood films...

Semi-finals and finals elimination charts

Contestants are in alphabetical order by last name, then by reverse chronological order of elimination.

Semi-finals

{| border="2" cellpadding="4" style="background:silver; border:1px solid grey; border-collapse:collapse; margin:0 1em 1em 0; text-align:center; "
|-
|+ Legend
|-
| style="background:pink;" width="20%" | Female
| style="background:cyan;" width="20%" | Male
| style="background:palegoldenrod;" width="20%" | Top 14
| style="background:CCCCCC;" width="20%" | Top 24
| bgcolor="666666" width="20%" |Top 32
|}

{| border="2" cellpadding="4" style="background:silver; border:1px solid grey; border-collapse:collapse; margin:0 1em 1em 0; text-align:center; "
|-
| style="background:black;" width 20% | Contestant did not perform during that week
|}

{| border="2" cellpadding="4" style="background:silver; border:1px solid grey; border-collapse:collapse; margin:0 1em 1em 0; text-align:center; "
|-
| style="background:palegreen;" width 20% | Top contestant of the week
|}

{|class="wikitable"
|colspan="3" align="right"|Stage:
|colspan="3" bgcolor="666666" align="Center"|Top 32
|colspan="8" bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="Center"|Top 24
|-
|colspan="3" align="right"|Elimination Day:
!12/5
!19/5
!26/5
!2/6
!9/6
!16/6
!22/6*
!23/6*
|-
!Place
!Contestant
!Gharana
!colspan="8" align="center"|Result
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Amanat Ali
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|-
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" align="center"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Poonam Yadav
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" align="center"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Sumedha Karmahe
|Josh
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Mussarat Abbas
|Rock
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Mauli Dave
|Josh
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" align="center"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Junaid Sheikh
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Joy Chakroborty
|Rock
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Nirupama Dey
|Rock
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Apurva Shah
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Rimi Dhar
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|-
|bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="center" rowspan="2"|11–12
|bgcolor="cyan"|Raja Hassan
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="4"|Elim
|-
|bgcolor="pink"|Saaberi Bhattacharya
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="center" rowspan="2"|13–14
|bgcolor="pink"|Reecha Tripaathi
|Josh
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|bgcolor="cyan"|Sunil Kumar
|Josh
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="center" rowspan="2"|15–16
|bgcolor="pink"|Shresta Banerjee
|Rock
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="4"|Elim
|colspan="1" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="cyan"|Harpreet Deol
|Josh
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|colspan="1" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="center" rowspan="2"|17–18
|bgcolor="pink"|Sumana Ganguly
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|colspan="2" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="cyan"|Wasi Efandi
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="cyan"|Btm 3
|colspan="2" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="center" rowspan="2"|19–20
|bgcolor="cyan"|Sikandar Ali
|Josh
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegreen"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="2"|Elim
|colspan="3" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="pink"|Jyoti Mishra
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|colspan="3" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="center" rowspan="2"|21–22
|bgcolor="cyan"|Brijesh Schandaliya
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="2"|Elim
|colspan="4" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="pink"|Anita Bhatt
|Rock
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|colspan="4" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="CCCCCC" align="center" rowspan="2"|23–24
|bgcolor="cyan"|Tushar Sinha
|Rock
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="2"|Elim
|colspan="5" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="pink"|Meghna Verma
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="pink"|Btm 3
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|colspan="5" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="666666" align="center" rowspan="2"|25–26
|bgcolor="pink"|Sarika Singh
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="2"|Elim
|colspan="6" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="cyan"|Imran Aslam
|Hit Squad
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|colspan="6" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="666666" align="center" rowspan="2"|27–28
|bgcolor="cyan"|Desh Gaurav Singh
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="2"|Elim
|colspan="7" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="pink"|Amrita Chatterjee
|Rock
|bgcolor="black"|
|colspan="7" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="666666" align="center" rowspan="2"|29–30
|bgcolor="cyan"|Yogendra Pathak
|Rock
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" rowspan="2"|Elim
|colspan="8" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|bgcolor="pink"|Koyal Chaterjee
|Josh
|colspan="8" bgcolor="666666"|
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="black" align="center" rowspan="2"|31–32
|bgcolor="cyan"|Sayan Chaudhary
|N/A
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|-
|bgcolor="cyan"|Binoy Mohanty
|N/A
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|bgcolor="black"|
|}

* During the week of 22 June, there was no separate Performance/Elimination episode as the week marked the beginning of the "Chakravyuh" phase. However, eight contestants were eliminated that week.

Finals (Top 14)

{|class="wikitable"
|colspan="4" align="right"|Stage:
|colspan="16" bgcolor="palegoldenrod" align="Center"|Agnipariksha (Top 14)
|-
|colspan="4" align="right"|Elimination Day:
!13/7
!20/7
!27/7
!3/8
!10/8
!17/8^†
!24/8
!31/8
!7/9
!14/9
!21/9
!28/9
!5/10
!13/10
|-
!Place
!Country
!Contestant
!Gharana
!colspan="16" align="center"|Result
|-
|align="center" bgcolor="palegoldenrod"|1
|align="center"|

|bgcolor="pink"|Rimi Dhar
|Yalgaar
|bgcolor="palegoldenrod" |Elim
|colspan="13" bgcolor="666666"|
|}

In the Agnipariksha round, eliminations are based on public voting. Public voting is done through SMS, telephone or online. Each week, the contestant with lowest votes is eliminated.

Additionally, if all the contestants of a Gharana get eliminated, the Gharana also gets eliminated and subsequently the mentor(s) have to leave the show.

^† During the week of 17 August, there was no eliminated contestant. That week's votes were added to the votes for the week of 24 August, and Junaid was then eliminated on the episode airing on 24 August.

The "Love Triangle"

Throughout the show a love story has been promoted by Himesh Reshammiya. It has been said that supposedly Aneek proposed to Barbie Doll, Sumedha, but she rejected him and later she was proposed to by Amanat. Amanat and Aneek's love story has been promoted mainly by Himesh Reshammiya, but it has also been stated that the story is false by many. Although many declare that this conclusion has no base, Himesh Reshammiya still advocates it because as he said he believes while he is on the show he will. The fact is that the contestant's families are not being considered and this has upset many because Aneek's parents were disappointed at him after hearing this story. Many conclude that they are sticking to this story for "masala", but the truth is still to be revealed like in many controversies. Now that Sumedha has been eliminated, this love story promotion has stopped and it has been said that after Sumedha was eliminated, she said on the show that she was tormented by Himesh Reshammiya and Aneek's remarks about their "alleged" love story. This was not aired on television.

Aneek-Abhijit controversy

On 29 June, Aditya Narayan announced that Aneek Dhar and Abhijeet Kosambi, the winners of the regional spinoffs of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Bangla and Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Marathi, would be getting direct entry as a Top 14 finalist. This was a pre decided qualification as it was a part of their respective prizes of winning the regional contests. The viewers of Marathi and Bangla had already seen and heard this announcement at live telecast on stage when Abhijeet Kosambi and Aneek Dhar had won the respective competitions, so in fact there was no need for any controversy in that case. Yet the mentors did not approve of this saying they should not be allowed to enter the competition in the middle and that they should have come from the beginning. Ismail Darbar tried to walk away from the show stalling the shooting of the program.

In the latter episodes, Abhijeet Kosambi was eliminated with the least number of votes. Aneek Dhar is the only contestant in Himesh Reshammiya's 'gharana'. However Aneek Dhar has been in the Bottom 2 once.
Aneek was also the top contestant thrice in the show and eventually ended up winning it all.

Independence Day controversy

The Independence Day

Independence Day (India)

The Independence Day of India is celebrated on the fifteenth of August to commemorate its independence from British rule and its birth as a sovereign nation in 1947. The day is a national holiday in India. All over the country, flag-hoisting ceremonies are conducted by the local administration in...

special episode shot on 10 August (Week 15) ran into a controversy when the issue came up of the Pakistani contestants, Junaid, Mussarat and Amanat refused to sing Indian patriotic songs on 15 August special. All work on the sets was stalled for 6 hours. Finally, the Zee TV officials decided that the Pakistani contestants should sing Pakistani patriotic songs as a solution. However, the next week, the three Pakistani singers were the Bottom Three. It was then decided that no contestant would be eliminated that week and the week's votes would be added to the votes of the following week to decide the next elimination

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Ek Shaam Taj Ke Naam

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Ek Shaam Taj Ke Naam was a one-day special episode organised by the SRGMP team as a tribute to the Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal is a white Marble mausoleum located in Agra, India. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal...

and also dedicated to request and encourage people to vote for the Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal is a white Marble mausoleum located in Agra, India. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal...

as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World
New Seven Wonders of the World
New7Wonders of the World was an initiative started in 2001 by the Swiss corporation New7Wonders Foundation to choose Wonders of the World from a selection of 200 existing monuments. A popularity poll was led by Canadian-Swiss Bernard Weber and organized by the New7Wonders Foundation based in...

.

As well as performances from the contestants of the season, the special episode also featured performances from contestants of previous SRGMP seasons such as Twinkle Bajpai

Twinkle Bajpai

Tia Bajpai was a finalist on the reality television music competition show, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005. She also participated in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Ek Main Aur Ek Tu, a duet singing competition, where she won the Judges Choice Award along with her partner Vishwas...

, Sanchita Bhattyacharya

Sanchita Bhattyacharya

Sanchita Bhattyacharya is an Indian singer. On October 28, 2006, she was declared the winner of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs, an Indian reality television show. At 15, this makes her the oldest winner in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs history as well as the first female winner with public voting...

, Diwakar Sharma

Diwakar Sharma

Diwakar Sharma is an Indian singer who was the runner-up to Sanchita Bhattyacharya on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs. He is known for his Filmi and Classical integrated style of singing. He is also one of the first visually impaired child artists on the national stage today.- Early life :Diwakar...

and Sameer Mohammed.

Miscellaneous Observations

According to facts, there are six not four Pakistanis taking part in the competition unlike as shown on the show. The other two Pakistanis who got selected apart from the original Pakistani screening are Imran Aslam from South Africa whose hometown is Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...

and Amanat Ali from U.A.E. who hails from Faisalabad
Faisalabad
Faisalabad , formerly known as Lyallpur, is the third largest metropolis in Pakistan, the second largest in the province of Punjab after Lahore, and a major industrial center in the heart of Pakistan. Before the foundation of the city in 1880, the area was very thinly populated. The population has...

.
Raja Hasan
Raja Hasan
Raja Hasan Sagar is an Indian playback singer. He was a finalist on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 who achieved 1st runner up in the competition attaining 3,52,40,963 votes in the final, losing to Aneek Dhar.-Early years:...

's father, Rafiq Sagar has been a playback singer himself and has sung a ghazal for a Bappi Lahiri
Bappi Lahiri
Bappi Lahiri or Alokesh Lahiri , born 27 November 1952, is a music director in the Hindi film industry. He pioneered the use of disco music in Indian cinema and sang some of his own compositions. He was popular in the 1980s with films like Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal and Sharaabi among others.-Early...

composition in the 1980 film Pyaara Dushman
Pyaara Dushman
Pyaara Dushman is a 1980 Bollywood Hindi movie. Produced by Subhash Sagar it is directed by Anand Sagar. The film stars Vidya Sinha, Yogeeta Bali, Sarika, Amjad Khan, Vinod Mehra and Rakesh Roshan...

..

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Concept

Regional auditions phase

Structure of auditions

Gharana selection

Hit Squad - Vishal-ShekharVishal-ShekharVishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...

Eklavya

Episode themes

"Mahagurus"

Bramhastra

Top 14 Finalists

Celebrity Guests

Semi-finals and finals elimination charts

Semi-finals

Finals (Top 14)

The "Love Triangle"

Aneek-Abhijit controversy

Independence Day controversy

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Ek Shaam Taj Ke Naam

Miscellaneous Observations

External links

Hit Squad ^{- Vishal-ShekharVishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...}