Mumbai, Aug 16: Singer Pawandeep Rajan has won the twelfth season of singing reality show "Indian Idol" and he says the victory has given him the confidence to work harder.
Rajan, who hails from Champawat, Uttarakhand, was announced as the winner of the show late Sunday evening following a 12-hour musical extravaganza billed as 'The Greatest Finale Ever' on Sony TV.
The singer said winning the title of Indian Idol season 12--judged by Anu Malik, Himesh Reshammiya and Sonu Kakkar-- was "unbelievable."
"I am overwhelmed and feel so fortunate. This is a responsibility and I will ensure to take the glory ahead. This has made me more confident to work. I was so nervous during the audition, I thought I would not even get selected. But the journey was nice.
"I learnt a lot from the judges, the team. 'Indian Idol' acted as a bridge to my dreams. I hope the fans continue to shower me with love," Rajan said in a statement.
The singer was awarded with a cheque of Rs 25 lakh from Sony Entertainment Television and a Maruti Suzuki Swift car.
Finalists Arunita Kanjilal and Sayli Kamble were declared as the first and second runners-up respectively. They were awarded Rs 5 lakh each.
The third and the fourth runners-up, Mohd. Danish and Nihal Tauro were awarded Rs 3 lakh each.
The "Indian Idol" season 12 was hosted by singer Aditya Narayan.
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Bengaluru (PTI): With large scale flight cancellations by Indigo airlines leaving passengers stranded, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday urged the Centre to act immediately and bring the situation under control.
He called the IndiGo fiasco a the direct result of the govt's monopoly model.
Taking to social media platform 'X', Shivakumar said India is witnessing the worst aviation meltdown in its history. "Thousands of flights cancelled - leaving our people stranded everywhere".
"The IndiGo fiasco is the direct result of the govt's monopoly model. And as always, it is ordinary Indians who are paying the price," he said.
Shivakumar said that the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru, which is India's 3rd busiest airport with nearly 40 million travellers a year, is in complete chaos.
"This is hurting families, businesses and our national reputation. I urge the Union Government to act immediately and bring this situation under control. Our people deserve better," he added.
Domestic carrier IndiGo cancelled over 800 flights on Saturday, the fifth day of the ongoing crisis, even as the government imposed a cap on airfares and directed the airline to process all refunds by Sunday evening.
