'Soad - 3' : Search for Konkani Singing Talents Worldwide

Pic: Dayanand Kukkaje
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore

Mangalore, Dec 28: Mandd Sobhann, the premier Konkani Cultural organization is joining hands with MCC Qatar and Daijiworld.com to present "Soad – 3 Universal", a reality show on local television channels and T V Daijiworld (internet) in pursuit of its search for "Rai Kogull Universe" and "Rani Kogull Universe."

Addressing a press conference attended by the president of MCC Richard D'Souza and editor-in-chief of Daijiworld.com Walter Nandalike, Mandd Sobhann Gurkar Eric Ozario said, "With Soad – 3 Universal we are giving an international dimension to our quest for singing talent among the youth. Though Soad 1 and 2 had a larger appeal it was basically centered around Mangalore. In this programme we are conducting programmes in 7 centers in India and 9 regions abroad."

He said the idea was mooted by MCC Qatar and the three organizations which have a rich history and tradition have come together in pursuit of a search for Konkani singing talent to provide an opportunity for the youngsters to exhibit their talent.

Eric also said that Soad - 3 Universal, which will be a Reality Show on local television channels and TV Daijiworld (Internet) involves 10 countries and 16 regions both in India and abroad. The contest is open to youth between the age of 15 and 35, for Konkanis of every region, religion and dialect. Though it is a Konkani competition even non-Konkanis can take part in the contest. All that they have to do is to sing one Konkani song of any dialect on track (karaoke).

"Though this is a Konkani song contest it is open to everyone and we are providing a fair field to all, keeping in tune with the tradition of Mandd Sobhannn," Eric Ozario said. He also stated that in Soad I, Kshama whose mother tongue was Urdu had lost in the finals by just half a point and in Soad 2 Chandrahas Ullal (non-Konkani) won the Rai Kogull award, which goes to prove that Mandd Sobhann provides equal opportunities to all without confining the competition to Konkani speaking people.

Countries involved in Soad -3 Universal are India, Qatar, UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi, Bahrain, Canada, Israel and USA. Competitions in these countries will be held in Doha, Dubai, Kuwait City, Muscat, Riyadh, Bahrain City, Toronto, Tel Aviv and Chicago. In India the competitions will be conducted in Mangalore, Bangalore, Mumbai, Goa, Chikmagalur, Honnavar, and Udupi.

Giving details of the contest Eric Ozario said that all aspiring contestants from anywhere around the world can participate in the preliminary round competitions at the regional level, in a region of his or her choice. The winners of every region, both male and female, will compete in the semi-final round to qualify for the finals. The "India semi-final" for all the winners from all the regions in India, will be held in Mumbai. The "Foreign semi-final" for winners of regions outside India will be held in Dubai.

The grand finale to choose Rani Kogull Universe and Rai Kogull Universe will be held in Doha, Qatar.

For the audience, only the two semifinals, held in India and abroad, will be telecast live. The singers in these rounds are also required to sing to the accompaniment of live orchestra. But all the preliminary rounds will be shooting sessions for television channels. Even the semi-finals and finals will be shot and telecast. The shooting for the Indian preliminary rounds will begin from February 2011 and the finals will be conducted in November 2011.

Aspiring contestants can register their name by visiting www.daijiworld.com / www.mccqatar.com / www.kalaangann.com for the prescribed form. They may also send their applications to mandd_sobhann@yahoo.com. Last date for receiving the applications is February 10, 2011.

Forms will be available during the first week of January 2011.

The winners will receive ‘Rani Kogull Universe’ and ‘Rai Kogull Universe’ titles for female and male winners respectively, trophy and crown and a cash award of Rs one lac each. The first runner-up in both categories will receive a trophy and cash award of Rs 25,000 each. The winners of every region, that is 32 contestants from 16 regions will receive Rs 10,000 in cash. The travel, boarding, lodging, visa and training expenses of the semi-finalists and finalists will be borne by the organizers.
 
Eric also announced that the winners of their respective regions will be provided an opportunity by the organizers to do music programmes, so as to provide a suitable forum for them to further enhance their singing skills and get more opportunities to reach out to a larger audience.

Mandd Sobhann president Louis J Pinto and MCC Qatar office-bearer Jerry D'Mello were also present at the press conference.