BY JYOTHSNA HEGDE
Atlanta, GA, December 20, 2024: Her rich, deep voice seemed to surface from a bottomless pit within and soared effortlessly above the crowd to reach the ears and hearts of those seated in the last row. All of 13, Vaibhavi Mathapati’s resplendent rendering was one of key highlights of Atlanta’s favorite singing competition! In an unprecedented finale, the oldest in the contest, Sitaram Murthy Yellapantula, who happened to be the dad of another finalist, impressed the judges and the audience casting a lasting impression on the listeners.
New champions emerged from a wealth of talented singers in the U.S. on November 16, 2024, at the Atlanta Indian Idol (AII) Championship presented by India American Cultural Association (IACA) at Duluth High School. Finalists hailed from various states including Georgia, Illinois, Colorado and Washington. Sitaram Murthy Yellapantula who wowed the judges and the audience with his euphonious rendition of ‘Chupana Bhi Nahi Aata’ from’ Baazigar’ secured his victory in the Adult category. Vaibhavi Mathapati who stole everybody’s heart with ’Kuhu Kuhu Bole Koyaliya’ from the movie ‘Suvarna Sundari’ in her dulcet voice, took home the crown in the Junior category.
“Atlanta Indian Idol has become a mainstay of our calendar. It is now perhaps one of the most prestigious singing competitions in the USA that caters to Bollywood music. This year, we had over 85 contestants from 12 states who auditioned for a spot in the Grand Finale, of which 10 in the ADULTS category and 8 in the JUNIOR category were selected. (Unfortunately, two in the adult category couldn’t participate in the finals.) The competition was very intense, and our audience had a musical feast. Every singer made an impression, and the judges really had a hard time ranking them. Every year, the quality of our contestants is getting better. It’s gratifying to see singers from our own backyard putting up such impressive performances!” Dr. Raktim Sen, Program Director said.
The championship round was the culmination of several qualifying rounds held through October -November. Ten contestants from Adult and eight contestants from Junior categories were selected from a total of 83 singers. Charged with energy and melody, the almost five-hour long program included high-octane dance performances from acclaimed dance academies across Atlanta.
The championship engaged the audience and participants with judges who provided feedback and encouragement after each performance. Contestants were judged on various aspects of their performance including rhythm, diction, tonal quality and accuracy and overall mastery of style, among others.
An attractive feature included the Onsite SMS polling system
by TextByChoice which allowed the audience to vote for their favorite singers
by texting the first four letters of their names. Sitaram Murthy Yellapantula,
the champion in Adult category, also won the Popular Choice Award in the Adult
category, while Arvin Sethi’s mellifluous rendition of the yesteryears’ classic
‘Woh Lamhe Woh Baatein’ from ‘Zeher’ earned him the Popular Choice Award in the
junior category.
Payal Sen, who sang ‘Tere Mere Milan Ki Ye Raina’ from ‘Abhimaan’ secured first
runner-up position and Bappa Biswas, who sang ‘Main Koi Aisa Geet Gaoon’ from ‘Yes
Boss’ was the second runner-up in the Adult category .
Shruti Sunil with her ‘Mohe Rang Do Laal’ from ‘Bajiraoa Mastani ’ was the first runner up and Ananya Muni’s ‘Jiya Re’ from ‘Jab Tak Hai Jaan’ was the second runner up in the junior category.
Dr. Raktim Sen, the program director of AII awarded
Director’s choice awards to Akshitha Jagadeesan, GA and Sandeep Chavan, GA in
the Adult category and Aditi Shyam, AL
Rithvika Tabjul, GA, Sharvari Bhusari, GA, and Shreya Bojja, IL in the Junior
category. The award, as the title suggests, was his picks for the evening.
The evening began with beautiful renditions of the national anthems of the USA and India by past Atlanta Indian Idol winners Anusha Goda (U.S.) and Sripriya Srinivas (India). Emcee for the evening was another previous AII winner, Madhuvani Kamarajugadda who engaged the audience with her vigor.
The Judging panel included Dr. Kakali Bandyopadhyay, Dr. Sujatha Rayburn, Asawari Gadre-Joshi, Madhuri Jadav, Anu Romesh and Statistician: Neeta Shenvi
Graceful dance performances by Guru Anurag Sharma of Kalashram USA and Indie Rhythm’s energetic delivery elevated the viewer experience.
Atlanta Indian Idol, brainchild of IACA’s current Chairman Chand Akkineni, founded by Chand Akkineni and Dr. Raktim Sen made its foray in 2013 opening to resounding success. “We wanted to create a platform to identify talented singers in Atlanta to promote and create visibility for their performances. IACA is glad to see Atlanta Indian Idol singers and winners become popular in the Atlanta Singers circuit. The performance of Junior singers, with exposure to western music, is exciting. Soon some of them will reach greater heights,” Akkineni said.
At the event, Chaitali De, Dr. Raktim Sen and Jyothsna Hegde were recognized for their contributions to IACA.
Event Director Dhananjay Gupta thanked sponsors Pankaj Gandhi, Sharmila Hudda Of Nari Shakti, Neelam &Kaushal Tripathi, Us 1 Discount, Dr. Paddy & Chandler Sharma And Ekongkaar Inc.
Event Director -Dhananjay Gupta, Program Director / Production Design – Dr. Raktim Sen, IACA President – Kaushal Tripathi, IACA Board Chair – Chand Akkineni, Event/Registration Coordinators – Chaitali De, Arindam Chowdhury, Media Director/ Audience Polling Admin – Jyothsna Hegde, Graphics & Video Support – Rutuparna Joshi, Backstage Management -Chaitali De, Arindam Chowdhury, Alashlina Sayed, Audience (SMS) Polling by – Nizar Bhojani, TextByChoice, Photography/Live Video – Kamalaksha Das, APKA Studio, Audio Engineer – Niloy Bhattacharya, Audio Technician – Caleb McNeail (DHS), Show Videography – Bishan Chandra.
