Fame X Synopsis/Articles: No Comments - Page 9

In the wee hours of the morning, Leena Mogre walked into the boys' and girls' rooms to invite them for a work out session. Thrilled by the prospect, the contestants took some extra time to arrive in the rehearsal hall. After a much-needed warm up, Leena fetched Niranjan Bharadwaj to teach the students how to breathe. Bharadwaj, the pranayam expert, picked out the smokers in the fraternity and made them go through the now popular 'Kapaal Bharti' and 'Anulom Vilom', which literally took their breath away. But in the end they were thankful for the extra oxygen and conveyed it to Bharadwaj. After the yoga session, the students were in an elated state and needed to spend that extra energy. Thankfully, Dean Palash knew exactly what to do. He divided the students into two groups, headed by Banjo and Rehan and asked them to create jingles for some imaginary products. Rehan's team came up with a concept of 'Chanta Chappal' with an aptly catchy slogan—Pahne toh kamal, pade toh dhamaal. Banjo's team decided to market an everyday product, blue jeans, and did a wonderful job selling it. Dean Palash bought it and declared them the winners. His parting shot—Jean Mubarak! In a serious analysis session afterwards, Dean Palash dissected the gala performances. He explained the four essential principles: strategy, psychological warfare, will to win and self-respect. These were the guidelines the contestants were to follow. He told Rakesh that being 30, he should realise that the time had come to get right into action. Palash told him that he would not get too many chances, he said, it's do or die for you. Arunima, the Bong girl was not bang on he said. You need to polish your act, he advised, and time it right. As for Adi, the Dean was happy with his performance and really had no comments. He said Adi was the only one who has improved so much since his entree in the Academy. Adi had a grouse though. He was frustrated with being misunderstood. He was also losing morale because he was constantly being called 'besura'. But Palash said that was a test he had to pass. Contestants then gathered in the rehearsal hall for voting. And for the first time there was a tie: Arunima and Adi both received three votes each. (All the boys voted for Arunima and all the girls voted for Adi, a fact not missed by the keen Dean!) Only Banjo's vote remained. As Dean Palash proceeded to ask him, Banjo requested time for a rethink. Dean refused because it wouldn't have been fair to the others. Reluctantly Banjo revealed his vote. He had not voted for his best friend and partner in crime (they share same tastes in almost everything), Aditya. He gave his deciding vote to Arunima instead. Adi was left stunned, but had no choice but to accept this decision. Dean Palash, however, asked Banjo to explain. Banjo fumbled and scraped through a poorly constructed reasoning and in the process reminded everyone that this was a competition and people would do anything to win. Friendship or no friendship, if you are a threat, you are not going to get my vote!

A happy Arunima was seen rejoicing and a sad Rakesh (nobody voted for him) was seen consoling Adi who looked heartbroken. However, these two will now compete against each other for a position in the caf round.

The New Year's gala began with Daler singing 'Namo Namo'. Ganesh carried it forward with his unique style of singing – a mixture of melody and rap. He also got Palash on the stage. Palash, now a performer rather than Dean, sang Mayeri' which is his most popular number. Sowmya joined them with 'Aaja Udiye'. That was just the beginning. Then Daler, Ganesh and Palash weaved a medley of melodious songs treating everybody to the ultimate star power. Fame Kudi Shilpa and guest MTV judge Ran Vijay were grooving to the tunes along with the audience. Ten contestants were to perform next. Fame Kudi Shilpa invited Rehan first. Rehan's Omkara was a commanding performance. The jury agreed that when Rehan is on stage, he owns it. Neeti felt that her mother had the biggest X factor. Her 'Chori ki baaten' proved that she has inherited that from her mom. Dean Palash mentioned how Neeti's performance made him love the song he once hated. Anandrupa said that with Palash being present to cheer her on, she doesn't miss her father. She sang Jiya Dhadak Dhadak Jaye with her usual charm. Ran Vijay found her performance very graceful. For Aditya, Sourav Ganguli's comeback and Amitabh Bachchan's staying power was the ultimate X factor. But when he sang Meter Down, everyone had to agree that Adi isn't short of the stuff either. Adi seems to have gotten 'aadee' of the fact that after his performance there would be a clash between Daler paji and Dean Palash. They didn't disappoint him this time as well. Sowmya decided to join the debate, too and she did so with a fighting spirit worthy of a tigress. Getting admission in Fame X was a turning point for Sammy. His 'Pape pyar karke pachtaya' was full of energy. But the jury felt a singer of his caliber should've done better. Arunima got a surprise visit from her parents. It was very emotional for Arunima and sadly, that's precisely what affected her performance. Her Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna was good but could've been better. Rakesh, who feels that like Samson his strength lies in his hair, sang 'Dilwich lagi' but missed his beats a bit. Daler noticed this and told him not to be 'Betala' meaning having no sense of rhythm. That prompted another argument between him and the Dean. Dean Palash got quite upset with the use of the word Betala. He felt that it was a harsh word and Daler should'e been careful using it for everyone respects Daler' opinion so much. Missing a beat here and there was very much different from having no sense of rhythm, the Dean said. Daler however felt that being lenient on the contestants was a mistake. They were chosen out of thousands and should not make a basic mistake of not following rhythm. It was quite a long argument,but eventually settled as it was based on the common interest of helping the Fame Academy students. Banjo admitted how he and Adi decided to take snaps of Vidhan while he was having a shower but got embarrassed when they learned how decent a guy Vidhan turned out to be. His 'Dil na Diya' was a smashing performance. Everyone was surprised that he danced well despite of his girth but advised him to lose some weight. Absentminded Ashutosh, who forgets to wear socks under shoes, didn't forget the notes when he sang Subhan Allah. His performance was appreciated but Ran Vijay asked him tone down his taste in clothes. Dhansu was the synonym for X factor for Ritu. And her Golmaal was a dhansu performance. Dean Palash told everyone that from now on whoever goes out of the Academy will go not because they are not talented, but because somebody else turned out to be better. After ten sensational performances, it was very difficult for the jury to decide which four will go to the Danger Zone. They finally selected Rakesh, Sammy, Aditya and Arunima. Dean Palash really had no choice but to pull back Sammy as this was his first time. All the rest are Danger Zone veterans.

The Fame Academy students will vote for one of the remaining three to come back in the next episode.

In a casual rehearsal session, Rakesh threw a challenge at Rehan which was readily accepted. Under Ashu's supervision, a mock singing fight was staged in the living room.

Although Rehan lived up to his talents, everyone voted for Rakesh just to piss off Rehan. But it was all done in good humor!

Monitor Adi was given a chance to go out and do some sight seeing in Mumbai. Being from Delhi, it was a chance Adi couldn't miss. While taking in the sights, he shared his dreams with the audience. He has a band in Delhi and wants to be a rock star.

He mentioned how hurt he was when Daler paji called him besura but how happy he felt when after his recent gala performance, Daler paji complimented him on his singing and hugged him.

His biggest regret was that his attitude was mistaken for arrogance and that was something he wanted to clarify. It was a good trip for Adi and for the audience as well.

Everybody was missing family which was the primary topic over lunch. They wanted some contact with their near-n-dear ones on Christmas and New Year eve. Banjo was especially upset as his mother's birthday falls on January 1 and he badly wanted to be with her on that day.

Nobody was in the mood for a choreo session. They asked the trainer for an off-day, which he kept refusing. Right then, Ganesh walked in the rehearsal hall.

In a moment that spirits were lifted and the Academy students gathered round the renowned chorographer. Ganesh had brought along his latest video and everyone enjoyed his song.

Dean Palash came in to greet Ganesh and the two of them asked the students to dance on a song. After carefully watching their performances, Ganesh gave some useful tips. He told Rehan not to be too confident and Arunima not to be too nervous.

He liked Sammy's dancing but said the same should be done with his singing. Neeti was good as usual and Adi, he said, needs female audience to perform his best.

After Ganesh left, the group was relaxing in the living room deciding on New Year's resolutions. Ashu's resolution was to sing Rang de Basanti on a higher note than Daler Paji and Adi wanted to write new songs with his Fame X friends.

Neeti mentioned how wonderful she felt when Adi treated her like his younger sister and on Rehan's wish that he just wanted to be a nice human being, Banjo joked that Rehan should start from being a human first.

But the apparent fun and games was just a faade. Inside, everyone was feeling the blues for being away from their families. And it gave way when Ritu couldn't take it any longer and started crying. She was missing her family too much. All the Fame X-ians rushed to console her and Ritu realised that she is with a family after all! The Fame Academy students are really a big family.

The theme for an impromptu party was cross dressing. Boys wore girl's clothes and make up and the girls wore boy's clothes and moustaches. They had some fun dancing in their new avataars. It was summarized well by funny man Banjo when he said, 'I am man with Dadhee in a Saree!'

Two contestants would be voted out and miss out on being in the Academy.

Ganesh and Daler sang a verse to invite Fame kudi Shilpa for the caf round, who jokingly complained that there was no coffee in the caf. The Fame X-ians assured her that they would take care of the matter. (Ashu immediately offered to take her out for a cuppa but was brushed off with a smile!) Shilpa asked the contestants about their life before the Academy. Rakesh had a paan ka thela and explained how his customers would pester him for a song. Alok used to sing in festivals in a special ceremony called jagran where no one sleeps for the entire night singing and praying to the Gods. Priyanka came from a conservative family in which the elders expected her to learn household chores and not waste time singing. Her routine was: Go to college, attend chemistry lectures which she hated, come home and help out her mother. Fame X, all three agreed, changed that. Ganesh explained that to be a good performer, one has to go through the struggling phase as it helps polish your God given talent. Daler emphasised that a performer should never be tense because his job is to entertain and make people relax which is not possible if the performer himself isn't. Rakesh followed this advice while he sang Loot Gaye. So did Priyanka and Alok who sang Ishaq Samunder' and Chak de phatte respectively. The jury agreed that Alok was the best among the three. Alok made special mention of Adi who helped him memorise the difficult Punjabi lyrics. In a fun question round, Ganesh left Rakesh speechless when he asked what would Rakesh do if his pants were torn and he had to cover it and tie his shoelaces at the same time. Alok who keeps mimicking everyone was asked what would he do if he was caught by Sowmya for mimicking her. A quick witted Alok replied that he would convince her that he was actually mimicking Sushmita Sen, who had been Miss Universe. All three pitted themselves against each other in a singing session. Priyanka's Piya piya and Nimbuda nimbuda, Rakesh's Nain lad jahie and Alok's Junun Junun created enough junun for Dean Palash to get up from his chair and cheer the three Danger Zonists.

Two of them will have to leave the Academy based on the voting by people of India.

The contestants have developed a weird sense of humour. Over breakfast they were seen discussing who was the dirtiest among them. As usual there were complaints about Rakesh's hygiene. And Alok, it was learned, was not very fond of bathing. Rehan's keen observation revealed a fact about Anandrupa, which wasn't very healthy either. She was seen eating some of the left over food from somebody else's plate. A nice topic for breakfast! Priyanka had promised to wash everybody's clothes if she was saved the last time. The contestants were not going to let her forget that. Each of them selected the dirtiest piece of clothing they could find in their cupboard and, along with Rakesh's legendary smelling shoes, thrust the laundry onto Priyanka. The poor girl protested as best as she could but the Fame X-ians are no friends in the matters of having fun. They gleefully cheered the poor girls efforts. Dean Palash gathered everyone in the music room and went through the gala performances one by one. He told Alok that on stage a performer should behave like a king and a king never lets his emotions get the better of him. He is always in control and that's what Alok has to do. Rakesh has a problem in the lower range, probably because he is a Sufi singer and that sort of singing is always done in high pitch. Dean Palash gave a valuable piece of advice to Ashutosh, telling him to learn to breathe between two lines or even words. One has to breathe sometime during singing, the question is when and how. Banjo was feeling short of breath and Dean Palash was surprised when he learned the reason for this. Banjo had been a smoker. Palash told him to get rid of the habit. If you want to be a singer, he said, your lungs should be in top shape. Everyone then moved to the rehearsal room for voting. While Neeti voted for Priyanka and Anandrupa for Alok, all the rest voted for Banjo. Being a funny man helped, but it was also because this was his first time in the Danger Zone. Adi, Banjo, Ashu and Rehan were feeling restless. They decided to play a prank on Sammy: a thank you note from Sammy to Dean Palash. They drew a nice greeting card thanking Palash for saving Arunima and forged Sammy's signature at the bottom. As soon as Dean Palash got the card he asked all of them to meet him. He asked Sammy what was going on. Sammy, completely flabbergasted, denied the whole affair. Then the Dean, in an angry voice, told the students not to get him involved in such matters. Everyone went quiet and for a second there was apprehension in the air. Then the Dean broke the tension by jumping up in his inimitable style and hugging Sammy, thus revealing he was part of the prank after all.

Watch out for Alok, Priyanka and Rakesh's performance in the caf round.

In true Christmas spirit, all the contestants made an entre on a wonderfully decorated set singing Tu hai aasma pe. As they started singing the evergreen Christmas song 'Jingle bells', Santa Claus himself appeared to wish everyone happy X-mas. But before long, Fame Kudi Shilpa forced the elderly Santa to reveal his true identity. It was Dean Palash. Calling himself 'Baba Santa Singh', a chuckling Palash announced that he had brought gifts for everyone. He started with the jury members. With a twinkle in his eye, Dean Palash gave Daler a bottle of Isabgol, a digestive. Then he turned to Ganesh and gave him a bottle of Navaratna tel, perfumed oil for the good-looking choreographer. Shilpa declared that today's theme was 'Ched chaad' (eve-teasing) and invited Sammy to perform. Sammy sang Sona sona, the Amitabh Bachchan song. Ganesh nailed it when he said that Sammy performed so well that he gave a performer like Rehan something to think about. Next was Neeti who performed Aankh mare. The jury, as always, were very happy with her performance. Dean Palash had a gift for her. He explained that everyone always complained that Neeti looked like a schoolgirl and so gave her high heel shoes. Rehan came out with Jise dhundhata hun har gali with his usual charm. But it was a difficult song and, coupled with dance steps, it left Rehan breathless. That was the only point the jury pointed out. Then it was time for the jury to hand out gifts. Ganesh told Palash that he had got a remedy for Palash's enthusiasm, which had him popping out of his seat too often. With a smile, he gave the Dean a khujli malam, which Palash accepted graciously. Daler told Dean Palash, who is also a qualified doctor, that he had something that would help the good doctor kill the germs. He gave him a disinfectant called 'Genda finile'. Of course, it was all done in good humour. Arunima came on stage next and sang Ye ladka hai Allah with nicely choreographed dance steps. Ganesh was pleased that his faith was justified. Dean Palash gave her a chocolate for her sweet performance. Aditya sang the naughty song Khambe jaisi khadi hai. His performance was very energetic. Daler pretended that he was unhappy with Adi's singing at first, but poor Adi's face made him reveal that he was pleased with his singing. Fame Kudi Shilpa's gift for the evening was a message from her dear husband, actor Apoorva Agnihotri, who said if he had to make a pass at his wife he would do so by singing Chahiye thoda pyar. It was surprise gift much appreciated by Shilpa. Anandrupa sang 'Gore gore' and danced so beautifully that Dean Palash declared it as the performance of the evening. It was truly wonderful and the jury readily agreed. Ashutosh sang Shahar ki ladki. But while dancing he often moved the mike away from his mouth and so many words he sang were lost. The jury pointed it out and asked him take care in the future. Banjo performed the classic Kishore Kumar number, Ek ladki bhigi bhagi si. His performance had elements of comedy, which was a novelty and was enjoyed by all. Alok sang Lage raho Munnabhai. On Shilpa's inquiry, "Ladke Patna me kaise chedte hai?", Alok explained that they did not tease, they simply took away the bride. Daler told him not to get too excited on stage and to maintain his energy levels. Priyanka sang Akhiyon se goli mare nicely, but fumbled in a couple of places. Ganesh caught on to it pretty quickly and asked her to learn to cover it up during the performance. Palash agreed saying that the audience should never get a feeling that a mistake has occurred. Ritu sang Kudi kunwaree. It was a very good performance and Daler specially mentioned that her voice quality was very good. Rakesh's was the final performance for the evening. He sang Ek ladki ko dekha. Daler mentioned that his voice range nicely and everyone was happy that he had attempted to move a bit. Then it was time to select the Danger Zonists. The jury had to select five instead four because there was a tie. Alok, Rakesh, Priyanka, Arunima and Banjo were the unlucky ones in the Danger Zone.

The faculty, after careful consideration, decided to pull Arunima back into the Safe Zone. The rest of the contestants will vote out one more person from the Danger Zone.

Fame Kudi Shilpa invited Aditya and Rakesh onto the stage for the eviction round. One of the two would get the golden chance to return to the Academy. She proceeded to ask Daler paji if he had ever got a golden chance in his life. Indeed I did, Daler said. He was given a chance by Shashi Gopal who produced the album Bolo ta ra ra, which went on to become one of the best-selling albums in the country. He mentioned that working with the great Amitabh Bachchan was a special moment in his life. Ganesh said he worked very selectively. For every song I choose, he said, I reject 10 songs in which I know nothing new is possible. He felt that being able to see what would develop in the future was his strongest point. Shilpa then asked the two Danger Zonists how they felt. Rakesh felt confident that the people of Chhattisgar would definitely vote for him. Aditya admitted that for the first time he was feeling really nervous. Both their families expressed anxiety for them. Rakesh's mother, who brought him up single-handedly, wished him luck. His wife reminded him that their two-year-old daughter was the reason why Rakesh was in the Academy and he shouldn't disappoint her. Aditya's father remembered the hard work Adi had put into his music. He told of the late nights and early mornings Adi worked during his shows. His mother appealed to Daler to live up to his name and be big-hearted enough to give Adi a chance. Daler assured her that he liked Adi very much and he would consider it his failure rather than Adi's. Ganesh also said how much he enjoyed Adi's performance and would miss him the most should he lose today. Fame Kudi Shilpa decided to end the suspense and revealed that Aditya would have to leave the Academy. He was lagging behind Rakesh by 8 per cent. Rakesh had garnered 54 per cent of the votes. Dean Palash was very upset with the decision. Losing by 8 per cent does not give a true picture of audience popularity and he felt Adi should be given one more chance. He was reluctant to let Adi go. But Daler reminded him of the rules of the show. He asked the Dean to be fair to those contestants who had left earlier. Finally, Dean Palash handed over the transfer certificate to Aditya with a heavy heart. Adi couldn't have left the Academy without saying goodbyes to his friends. Rehan wanted his guitar lessons to continue. Banjo would miss his partner in crime. And Neeti would lose her big brother. But one has to sever the emotional bonds sometime. Adi did so with poise and his trademark charm.

Everyone will miss Adi, but the show will go on. Nine remaining contestants will now vie for the top slot in the gala round next week, which will be called the Fame X Champion.

'Now, my kids will defy Dalerji'

Established playback singer Sowmya Raoh is confident about her potential as the Vice Principal of Fame X Academy, for her pupils have what it takes. BT digs in

NIMISHA TIWARI

   With over 200 songs in Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil to her credit, playback singer Sowmya Raoh is now a favourite with the audience. Courtesy Fame X on SAB, she is the vocal coach of the contestants and also the Vice Principal of the Academy.
   This enterprising young singer started her career working with various music directors including Ilayaraja and Vidyasagar in the South. She has also sung for composers like Sandeep Chowta, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Sajid-Wajid, Leslie Lewis and Anand-Milind. She says, "My training with them has lent me the knowhow to hone the musical talents of the Academy kids."
   Sowmya relates well with the ambitions of these participants as she moved to Mumbai to pursue playback singing in Bollywood. In body of work includes films like Jungle, Company (Aankhon Mein Raho), Dum (Jeena), Ek Aur Ek Gyarah, Yeh Kya Ho Raha Hai, the hit Laila Laila from the film Samay and also the forthcoming Mani Ratnam flick starring Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai.
   Its common knowledge that at Fame X Academy, week after week, Sowmya's convictions met heated allegations from jury member Daler Mehndi about the contestants' performances, especially at the gala episodes. "Dalerji called one of the contestants besura, to which the Dean of the Academy, Palash Sen and I took great offense." His comments on contestants Aditya Jassi and Rakesh Sharma have also been unhealthy. "So, now I have taken it upon myself that I will refine these top nine contestants' sur even more and defy Dalerji by proving that these kids are excellent singers."
   Sowmya puts in time and effort training and helping the contestants improve their tonal quality and pitch. She confides that all the moments spent with them are close to her heart. And together, "My kids will win over the audience and Dalerji's heart."

 

Dean Palash made an announcement that kick-started today's gala on a happy note. He said that the best performer would be named star of the week and would be allowed to go home for one whole day. On that cheerful note, Fame Kudi Shilpa revealed the theme for today. The contestants were to sing in pairs. To be coupled with their rivals was a challenge. The first pair to perform was Sammy and Neeti. They rocked the stage with Chaiya chaiya. Everyone was very happy with their performance. Next were Rehan and Ashutosh. They pitted against each other with Ek chatur naar. It was such a smashing performance that even Daler paji admitted it and Dean Palash handed a Five C note to each of them. Banjo and Ritu sang Pyaar toh hona hi tha. Ganesh felt Ritu should've danced more gracefully and Daler wanted more feelings in the songs. But they had good chemistry and, jokingly referring to their heavy steps, funny guy Banjo added that they had good physics as well. Kajara muhabbat wala was Ritu and Anandrupa's number. They were very good and the judges didn't have anything but praise for them. At this point Dean Palash, who was in a gambling mood, placed a bet with Daler paji. 'I'll bet Rs 5,000 on the next pair', he said. Daler instantly accepted, saying that the next pair would go out tonight. Banjo and Rakesh were the guys on whom the money was placed. They sang Yamma yamma with lots of energy, but Daler was not very happy with their performance. He tried to settle the bet by offering the money to the contestants, but Banjo refused saying he would only accept it if Daler felt they deserved it. Arunima and Sammy sang Hai Rama, which is a very sensual song. They did it with genuine feelings, but it was a difficult song to sing and perform and Ganesh advised them to choose an easy one next time. Then Ashutosh was paired with Neeti and they sang Bole taro dhol baje. Daler was not happy with their pronunciations and felt the words should reach the audience clearly. Rannvijay felt they needed more chemistry. Rehan and Anandrupa sang O sharabi. It was such a wonderful performance that Daler complimented Rehan for his singing. Ganesh furthered the compliment by saying Rehan made him feel proud to be associated with the show. Palash, however, cautioned him not to be overconfident. Rakesh and Arunima performed Tu cheej badi hai mast mast. The performance lacked energy and the judges pointed that out. Rannvijay liked the braided look Rakesh was sporting and told him to continue with it. Since everyone got an extra chance to perform tonight because of the pairings, the judges were in two minds about deciding on the Danger Zonists. They finally selected Rakesh, Sammy, Arunima and Banjo.

Dean Palash reasoned that since the people of India were in favour of Rakesh, it would be he who will return to the Academy. The remaining three—Sammy, Banjo and Arunima—shouldn't lose hope as one of them will be voted back in the next episode.