Stepping into Shaan's shoes-article

The Zee-Star war is officially out in the open; Shaan quit anchoring Sa Re Ga Ma Pa to join a panel of judges on Star's Voice of India Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa. The most obvious question now is; who will step into Shaan's shoes?

The buzz goes that Zee has approached Babul of Kaho Na Pyaar Hai fame and Aditya Narayan of Rangeela fame. The first is a seasoned singer with a couple of albums to his credit and the other is a novice with a promising future.

"We are talking to various singers, Babul, Aditya Narayan and Adarsh (a new name), we have not finalised as yet," reveals Ashish Kaul, Senior Vice President Zee Telefilms.

So, with the hunt for a new anchor on, will the format change with innovative changes? "The format will essentially remain the same, but we're trying to always spice it up and the show will be innovative," says Kaul.

Season two has head for a change in judges as the previous scholars of music industry have been lured by Star. The new panel will have the Rock-RnB Hip Hop -Bollywood specialists Vishal and Shekar; the eternal nasal voice of mass appeal Himesh Reshamiya, the legend of melody Ismail Darbar and the man in gold Bapphi Lahiri.

Babul, who had just returned from Calcutta, confirmed, "Yes, I have been approached for the show, but we have not signed it. We've been on talks for a while now."

Well, Aditya Narayan, on the other hand did not sound so decisive, "Yes I have been approached for the show; however the decision has to be taken as yet. I might do it or I might not!"

Why the uncertainty? "Well, because, TV takes up a lot of time and I have still a year of studies to finish. I want to practice on my classical music as well." There's a bright side to it though; won't it work like a launch pad? "Yes, of course it will change a lot of things, it's a brilliant opportunity." However, his tone is significant that he doesn't want to be stuck with TV. So, is he pursuing acting, he laughs "Yes, I love acting but music is my first love, I am looking forward to doing both."

As the real story unfolds, we're putting our bets on Aditya Narayan since he's young and charming, though Babul is a seasoned and experienced singer. Aditya would also appeal to the audience as a new face on the small screen and can definitely pool in young audiences' to watch the show.

A jog down the memory lane shows a similar strategy that was followed for Sonu Nigam and Shaan in the past. Let's us hope that the new anchor Zee chooses breathes new life into the show.