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Prince of Patiala falls short of becoming King
Anamika is first Rohanpreet is second and bachhoo Tanmay is third
Gagandeep Kaur 

The singing verve has fully gripped the Punjabis and the Sikh community. One after the other, talent shows are churning talent for the music industry and announcing the names of Sikh winners. It all started with Ishmeet Singh turning out to be the winner of Star Voice of India. Now it is Rohanpreet as L’il Champ. There has been no looking back. 

From an unknown name some months back to a household name, Rohanpreet has got the maximum number of international votes and has been crowned the first runner up in the Lil Champs contest organized by Zee TV. The wonder kid fell short of some 6 lakh votes in the final tally overtaking the ‘entrepreneur’ Tanmay from Uttar Pradesh, but trailed behind the ‘already grown up’ Anamika from Assam. It was a pleasing sight to see him mimicking and stage-acting already like a star.   

He may not have been able to win the prize car, but with 30,000 dollars as prize money at the age of eleven, he surely would be able to finance his father’s health club and gymnastic centre.   

His rendition of Bulla and the much-acclaimed “touching feel” in his voice made him the darling of kids and adults. Since the time the public had chosen the three finalists, the show had become more thrilling and exciting. Punjabis and Sikhs from around the world showed enough enthusiasm and voted in lakhs for the chubby Rohanpreet.  In Punjab, schools and other Sikh organizations, which had launched a fever pitch campaign in favour of Ishmeet, found the pre-exam time a wrong time to launch a sustained vote mania.  Also they seemed relaxed and ‘tired’ of reality shows.  

Toiling with the classical music since he was five years old, Rohanpreet has already tasted success.  He has been learning music from his uncle, G.S. Sehgal who is a well known singer, composer and lyricist and is associated with Patiala and Jaipur Gharanas of music and when contacted by WSN on phone in Mumbai, he said that regular practice would continue.   

Owing to his hard work and staying away from home for five months under the arc lights in Mumbai, doing one studio recording after another, he has given the Sikh face with the small headgear, patka a new recognition and flavour.  His normal naughty school behaviour and activities should serve as an example for the Melbourne School which has thrown out a Sikh kid as he wore the patka to school.  Coming on the heels of Ishmeet, it will certainly lend more credence to the Sikh identity in the entertainment industry where it has invariably been associated with those without these visible symbols.  It should also encourage the Indian film industry to stop stereotyping Sikhs in a poor light. 

Alongside singing, Rohanpreet is honing his acting skills too.  His typical leg movement has been a point of discussion amongst the judges, audience and the cine guests.  The compere of the show, Aditya Narayan, himself a known singer announced that Rohan’s presence had enhanced the status of the show and that was a telling comment in his favour.  

Presence and popularity has never come to aspiring singers in the past as easily as today, but whether that will deliver mediocre talent or will foster serious singing talent remains to be seen.  

The little lad, who is all but eleven, with his singing and dancing is likely to reinforce the Sikh image positively when he goes on a world tour in April sponsored by Zee TV. 

It was interesting to watch the faces of parents during the course of such shows.  When confronted by WSN that she looked sad when the results were announced, Rohanpreet’s mother Daljeet Kaur said,”It’s human nature. One is never satisfied” but continues to say “I am very happy that in a short span of time he has become a singing sensation.” When I spoke to the sweet and innocent, Rohanpreet, he thanked Waheguru for his success and said that he planned to tie the turban but no soon, as “he is still a child.” More than anybody else, Rohanpreet’s father was thrilled to the core.  

While the BBC continues to stereotype Sikhs on BBC Radio 4, the likes of Ishmeet Singh and Rohanpreet Singh have chosen the medium of song and dance to connect to the world and help create a realization that the Sikhs are a loving community with a keen zest for life.

5 March 2008
 

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