Teen singing sensations from India go wild in Joburg
ON STAGE they are a force to be reckoned with, belting out hit after hit from some of India’s biggest playback singers.
Offstage, they are just like any other teens, in love with adventure and the outdoors.
Winner of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Lil Champs 2015, Gagan Gaonkar, 14, from Udupi, Karnataka, and runner-up Keshav Tyohar, 16, from Patna, were at Emperors Palace, in Joburg for one night.
After performing to a soldout crowd, the boys decided to unwind in the wild on a drive at the Lion and Safari Park in Lanseria earlier this week.
After they petted lion cubs and a 5-year-old cheetah, Gaonkar called his mother, explaining the day’s activity to her in Hindi.
Earlier he described his experience as “awesome”.
Tyohar uploaded the pictures of the safari on his laptop that showed the lions bonding with their offspring and giraffes grabbing leaves from the trees.
Both of the youngsters started singing at the age of 4, and will release a single with three other little champs, which has already been recorded.
However, no official release day has been planned.
Gaonkar knew he was going to pursue a career in music after winning first place in a singing competition at the age of five for the song tappu maaDadavr yaaravre by singer Ashwath.
“My grandfather was a musician. He used to play the bhajan. I think I got my talent from him. It was my parents who encouraged me to follow this dream of mine and travel with me wherever I go.
“I want to pursue a music career once I finish school, and hopefully become the playback singer for Sharukh Khan or Salman Khan.
“I also want to study audio engineering,” he said.
Gaonkar hopes to come back to South Africa, preferably Durban, which he learned so much about.
“I love it in South Africa. People welcomed me with open arms and that made me feel at home. For me entertaining people makes me happy and I love to feed off the positive energy that people bring to a show,” he said.
Tyohar loved his performance so much that he rated it the best he had done to date.
The teenager, who performed with some local acts, including Durban teenage sensation, Risa Moodley, said South African talent was not getting enough exposure for performers to hone their skills.
He had watched some local acts on TV and others on YouTube.
“South African artists have potential and they should be given more exposure. I also believe that local artists should put themselves out there more often and have faith that they can achieve it,” he said.
Tyohar wants to study music once he has completed his schooling.
“I love semiclassical music and tend to go for a genre and not the people who sing them.
“I am also passionate about film, which I now refer to as my hobby. My short film on India’s Independence Day won fifth place at the National Youth Festival,” he added.
The talented twosome also announced that auditions for the new season of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Lil Champs have officially started and is now open to all international countries, including South Africa.