A series organized by Bol Hyderabad 90.4 FM

The students of Department of Communication, Sarojini Naidu School organized the finals of “Raaga 2017- The Voice Hunt” at the Savitribai Phule (formerly DST) Auditorium on November 20, 2017. Raaga is a first of its kind singing contest initiated by Bol Hyderabad 90.4 FM (UoH’s campus-based community radio channel), in the year 2013, to bring out the singing talents of the community irrespective of their age, genres, and language. After a successful musical 5th season where 65 people turned up for auditions, six contestants remained in contention for the winner’s crown and the finals was organised as part of the Campus Concert Series.

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The event began with performances from the semi-finalists which thoroughly entertained the crowd. MA Political Science student Aravind S. Kartha and alumni Chakshu Joshi got the loudest cheers from the University audience, while Sarthak Arriara sent the crowd into raptures with his guitar skills.

Abhijeet Purkar

Abhijeet Purkar winner in Men’s category receiving prize from Prof. Rajeev Wanker

The tension on the faces of the six finalists was palpable when the time for their performances arrived. Having gone through three gruelling elimination rounds to get to the finals, this was their time to shine on the stage in front of an adoring crowd.

M Maunica

M Maunica winner in Women’s category receiving prize from Shri Ashish Jacob Thomas, PRO

The finalists performed some mesmerizing numbers in Hindi and Telugu to enchant the crowd. An ice-breaking session intermitted the performances to help the contestants calm their nerves by interacting with their friends and families in the audience. Songs by contestants’ mothers transported the audience into the early 90’s.

Akshat

Akshat runner-up receiving prize from Prof. Rajeev Wankar

Proceedings for the result announcements began with addresses from Mr. D.V.K. Vasudevan, Station Co-ordinator of Bol Hyderabad and Mr. Ashish Jacob Thomas, Public Relations Officer, University of Hyderabad, encouraging the contestants to pursue their passion of singing in the future.

Vaishnavi

Vaishnavi runner-up receiving prize from Mrs. PVN Jyothi

Abhijeet Purkar was declared the winner in Men’s category and M. Mounica in the Women’s category. Akshat and Vaishnavi were the runner-ups in their respective categories.

Aravind

Aravind receiving prize from Dr. Shree Gyanmote, Hindi Officer

The judges, Prof. Rajeev Wankar, the 1st winner of raaga-2013, Mrs. PVN Jyothi, a carnatic classical music vocalist and Dr. Shree Gyanmote, a music enthusiast, handed over the trophies and certificates to the winners and the finalists to bring an end to a beautiful evening filled with melodious music.