Arijit Singh, Neha Kakkar, Jubin Nautiyal, Meiyang Chang: Those who won despite losing

At this point in time more than any other, there are singing reality shows galore on TV. So what if you don’t win a reality show! Is that the end of the world for your dreams or your career? Most likely not. Perseverance is the name of the game and those that stuck to their guns made it for the long haul. It’s a well-documented fact that the winners of reality shows have rarely gone on to have wildly (or mildly) successful careers in Bollywood or the independent music scene. 

But for the rare exceptions of, let’s say, a Sunidhi Chauhan (Meri Awaz Suno) and a Shreya Ghoshal (Sa Re Ga Ma), most other reality show winners (Abhijeet Sawant of Indian Idol 1, Sreerama Chandra Mynampati of Indian Idol 5, Rituraj Mohanty of India’s Raw Star, for example) seem to have started out well, but are not as well known. 

Arijit’s example

It isn’t for lack of trying. Those that struggle incessantly know success to be a fickle friend and it is years of not losing heart, some struggle, hard work and dedication. It’s even harder for those who don’t win. Just ask Arijit Singh. In 2005, he participated in and didn’t even make it to the finals of Fame Gurukul. Today, he is one of Bollywood’s A-List singers. It would take winning another reality show called 10 Ke 10 Le Gaye Dil, a few years assisting and singing for the top composers of Bollywood and consistently shining in films to finally reaching an Aashiqui 2 that took him to the very pinnacle of his profession. Today, everybody knows his name.

‘Reality’ check

Jubin Nautiyal would have a shorter struggle. The Kaabil singer’s career trajectory begins from a show called The X Factor in 2011, where he was eliminated after the Top 25 list was cut short. By 2014, he debuted with Sonali Cable’s Ek Mulaqat. Work with Jeet Gannguli and Mithoon followed, but most of these were one-off hits. It would take Ok Jaanu’s The Humma Song, the Kaabil title track and Bhawara Mann from Jolly LLB in quick succession to see him at the top of his game. When asked about the positives and negatives of being on a reality show, he says, “A reality show is definitely a reality check for an artist, it’s a place where they get to see the real world and competition.” His advice to contestants everywhere? “A reality show should be taken as a platform or a stage where millions will watch you. However,  what they are watching and enjoying is your hard work and your journey.

So, when the lights are out, what you take back with you is a smile and your talent.”

‘Going through the grind’

Remember Gerua girl Antara Mitra? Well, it’s surprising you didn’t recall her from 2006’s Indian Idol Season 2. She definitely was a popular contestant and a finalist, but she didn’t win. Anu Malik famously offered her a Bollywood break. She was non-committal. It would take another show (called Junoon, which she didn’t win either) before debuting with a track called Loving You alongside Sonu Nigam for a film called Speed as early as 2007. Pritam composed that track and would go on to work with her on several soundtracks, eventually giving her the popular Saree Ke Fall Sa (2013’s R...Rajkumar) and three of her biggest hits Gerua, Manma Emotion Jage and Janam Janam (Dilwale) by 2015 and Jaaneman Aah (Dishoom) last year. 

When approached, Mitra admits that a reality show gives one a basic platform, but says that once you leave the show, the struggle begins with a larger group of people. “Trying to tap music directors (to hear you)  and getting to even sing a scratch is a fight in its own way! But thankfully, these days music directors are seeking out new voices. What music reality shows do, she says, is increase your chances of getting noticed.You have to go through this grind!”

‘All positives...’

Indian Idol 1’s Rahul Vaidya, who currently has a successful live show career and occasionally releases singles, gives us a more tempered opinion on the matter. He says, “I believe there are no negatives and only positives of appearing on a music reality show. In a place like Mumbai, owning a house or a car or one’s livelihood through live shows would have otherwise been very difficult for small-town guys like me, who come to Mumbai to find a job. Finally, it’s luck and timing above all that puts you with the right people at the right time. Without it, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”

‘Always the internet’

And taking that point forward is one of our favourite rappers, Hard Kaur. She does tell us about the rather promising Satinder, who she discovered through YouTube (he appeared on Chhote Ustaad). “I manage Satinder now”, she says, adding, “Although, he was very young (only 11 then), I thought he might get big offers. Nothing actually came of the show for him and he went back to his normal life and was demotivated. He gave up on singing. I searched for him for four years before getting his number and calling him. Now we’ve recorded tracks and may release his first single this year. I guess if it wasn’t for the show, I wouldn’t have discovered him and he’d have given up singing... Then again, there’s always the internet, huh?”

‘Have that spark’

She has a point. One can’t really lose hope. It’s something Indian Idol 3 finalist Meiyang Chang knows first-hand. He tells us, “I can tell you with conviction that it’s about the journey and not the destination. Put your everything into reaching for the stars. If you don’t make it, don’t lose heart. Remember, you were chosen over thousands of hopefuls, so there must be a spark in you. With so many reality shows with regular seasons, there are always more opportunities.”

‘Take failure in your stride’

Nakash Aziz, a popular playback singer today (and an Indian Idol 2 contestant) says, “When I was voted out, I took that failure in my stride and kept working hard to make my mark in Bollywood.”

‘Just work harder’

Nihal Shetty, who appeared on the first season of The Stage, would go on to do backing vocals for Mirzya and Rock On 2 and is steadily inching his way up in Bollywood. The sad part, he says, is that on these shows, “some days, things just don’t work out performance-wise. And it could undo your entire journey that far. But you get past that and work harder.”

It’s something nearly almost every contestant who hasn’t won a reality show can relate to.

Other contestants who made it big

Neha Kakkar

(Indian Idol 2; Currently, a popular playback and independent singer-songwriter)

Darshan Raval

(India’s Raw Star; Currently YouTube phenom, released a few singles and has over 3L followers on FB)

Monali Thakur

(Indian Idol 2; Currently, a Bollywood playback singer and actress)

Mohd Irfan

(Star Voice Of India; Currently, popular playback singer)

Toshi-Sharib 

(Star Voice of India and Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge; B-Town composers today)

Altamash Faridi

(Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Singing Superstar; Currently, a playback singer)