In my opinion, here is how I rate the contestants today:
1. Deepali-8/10😊
I felt she did well, but somehow the energy needed for the song and emotions in it were missing. Deepali compensated heavily with her expressions and her pretty dress, but I would for once like to see more emotions in her songs! Such a technically perfect singer would go to waste without the right "dard" in their rendition.
2. Amit--9/10😛
I liked Amit's performance more than Deepali's. At first I felt something was wrong with the background score, for it kept repeating this annoying honk like sound during his opening. Of course, then Amit reached for the higher notes and it was completely magnificient and had all the emotional feel necessary to bring this patriotic number home. A job well done, I would say, but Amit is yet to beat his "Pehla Nasha" and Wild Card performances.
3. Chang-7.5/10😕
I don't exactly know what he was doing wrong, but for some reason it didn't click with me. It seemed like he was reciting it like a poem and that too doing an excellent job with his prononciation and intensity of emotions. I mean Chang's oratory skills are excellent (probably the best Hindi speaker in the group after Deepali), but somehow those emotions never translated into a musical melody or the agitation that this highly patriotic number should have generated. Better luck and better song selection next time Chang!
4. Ankita-6/10😕
Too many mistakes this time around. Biggest one being the stunt she tried at the opening point serenading the judges. Perhaps staying on stage and keeping calm would have been better! Also, blame it on nerves or whatever, her singing was flat and she did not live up to her usual "damdar" performances. Only hope she makes it through tomorrow.
5. Puja-6/10😕
She really could not leave up to the hype of this highly popular and classic number by Lataji. As Anu ji and the other judges rightly noted, this song is not worth touching for it is way to familiar to each and every Indian, and even an slight mistake could be fatal! Poor Puja (perhaps due to her illness from the elimination round) just sounded fatigued and feeble--a contrast to her excellent dynamic performance last week--and sadly the judges didn't spare her!
6. Emon-9/10😛
Emon was prepared to rock the house and the good thing about him is that he is forever consistent. He chose a tough number for Lakshya but lived up it with minimal mistakes! A talented singer and perhaps the only one among the younger lot of contestants completely prepared for playback singing and ready to sing all types of songs! Good job Emon, keep up the good work.
7. Prashant-8.5/10😛
Prashant is probably the only one among the 7 remaining II3'ers who is only in competition with himself. Perhaps it is his unique voice but it is difficult to compare him with the rest. Good news for Prashant that his last two performances have been appreciated, and this one also lived up to the hype for 2/3 judges at least. I am not worried at all about him tomorrow. Keep up the positive work Sepoy!
Bottom 2 Predictions: Ankita and Puja