On Sunday night, at what was publicised as the ‘greatest finale ever’, Pawandeep Rajan walked away with the trophy of Indian Idol 12 and a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh. Arunita Kanjilal and Sayli Kamble were announced as the first and second runners-up, respectively.
Minutes after his name was announced as the winner, Pawandeep spoke exclusively to indianexpress.com and shared that it was a bittersweet moment for him. Breathing heavily amid all the excitement and chaos around him, he shared, “It’s an unmatched feeling to be holding the trophy. However, given the close bond we formed over the past few months, I wanted each one of us to win.
I wish I could share the trophy with all my five other finalists. It’s a very mixed feeling for me right now. I know that everyone is so talented that we will all forge great careers soon. We will also be collaborating together whenever we get a chance.”
While the contestants shared a warm bond, Pawandeep’s close friendship with Arunita Kanjilal led to speculation of a budding romance. The two have, however, time and again maintained that they are just good friends.
On being asked what did his bestie tell him after his big win, Pawandeep smiled, “We haven’t got much time to speak but on the stage, Arunita said congratulations and that she is really happy for me.”
As seen in the episode, his mother could not hold back her tears as the announcement was made by host Aditya Narayan. Sharing that it is indeed an emotional moment for all of them, Pawandeep thanked his fans for their continuous support, “I don’t know how can I ever repay the love they have showered on me. If it was on me, I would have met each one of them individually to thank them.”
This is the Uttarakhand boy’s second win after The Voice in 2015, and he shared that it has only made him more responsible towards his listeners. He shared, “Given that they love me so much I cannot let them down. I think I can only work on my craft better to give them good music.
That will be my payback for them. Ashish (Kulkarni) and I have decided to work as a composer duo and we plan to churn out some amazing music in the future. This is just the beginning and I cannot wait to see where my musical career takes me.”
Pawandeep Rajan already has big plans to use his prize money to develop a music culture back home in Uttarakhand. “There are not many facilities in Champawat, and hence I want to start a music school.
After seeing my journey, a lot of people are already keen to learn. This is the reason I also built a studio and now I want to go big so that everyone gets a good opportunity to make their dreams come true.”
At the finale night, Shershaah actor Sidharth Malhotra revealed his mother is also a Pawandeep fan. He even said that he would like the singer to sing for him someday. When asked which Bollywood star would he like to playback for, the Indian Idol 12 winner sheepishly shared, “I would love to sing for any actor but I am a Salman Khan fan. I would really like to sing for him someday.”
Apart from Pawandeep, Arunita and Sayli, the other finalists of Indian Idol 12 were Shanmukhapriya, Mohd Danish and Nihal Tauro. Hosted by Aditya Narayan, the show aired on Sony TV.
