THERE IS MORE TO PRASHANT TAMANG BEING 'VOTED' AS THE INDIAN IDOL: HERE'S THE TRUTH THAT TRANSCENDS BOUNDARIES

When he decided to try his luck at the Indian Idol reality show, winner Prashant Tamang probably did not dream that he would make it to the top.

Even if he did imagine that, the 24-year-old from Tungsung village in Darjeeling district could have never thought, even in his wildest dreams, that for many in Nepal his win would become a symbol of political victory over their southern neighbour India, frequently regarded as an arm-twisting bully.

For nearly two months, Nepal agonised over Indian Idol while its own contest Nepali Tara went ignored. Indeed, the Nepalese contest had to change its timing since no one watched it while it clashed with Idol.

Why would a nation ignore its own talents and devote its energies to promoting a singer whose ancestors originated from Nepal?

The answer is because, for many Nepalese, Darjeeling is still part of Nepal. In the 19th century, Darjeeling and other parts of Sikkim had been annexed by Nepal. However, as the British East India Company tried to open trade routes to Tibet via Sikkim, Nepal waged war against the Company and lost.

As a result, it was forced to sign the Sugauli Treaty and withdraw from all the territory it had occupied in Sikkim, Kumaon, Garhwal and much of the Terai.

Though the British found it difficult to govern the Terai and restored some of it to Nepal, Darjeeling, Kumaon and Garhwal remained part of British India.

When India obtained independence in 1947, Nepal hoped to get back its wrested land but did not.

Since then, the dream of achieving a "Greater Nepal" some day in the future with the lost area still remains in the mind of the Nepalese.

Royalists had been demanding a Greater Nepal and the Maoists, the opponents of the royalists, want it as well, demanding that the Sugauli Treaty be scrapped.

There has been no formal treaty between Nepal and India after 1947, even after Sikkim's merger with India in 1975, which Nepal regards as the annexation of Sikkim.

Nepal still does not formally recognise Sikkim's "annexation", nor has India sought recognition from Nepal.

Therefore Nepalis still regard Darjeeling as a part of Nepal that should be restored and Prashant Tamang is considered a Nepalese.

His victory Sunday therefore is the victory of Nepal over India in a way, which is why, despite his Indian citizenship, the fact that Prashant speaks Nepali at home, which constitutionally is an Indian language as well, is being regarded as evidence of his being a Nepalese.

Ironically, actress Manisha Koirala, who carved a niche in Bollywood, was never an icon in Nepal. One reason was probably because she came from one of Nepal's most influential families and the average Nepali did not identify with her.

Her popularity also took a dive after she supported King Gyanendra when the king tried to seize absolute power through an army-backed coup.

Nepalis feel that Manisha obtained stardom with the help of the Indian film industry, she did not "defeat" thousands of Indian contenders to attain success.

KARUNYA GETS READY TO SHAKE A LEG WITH PRETTY DAMSELS, WHILE ABHIJEET IS GROOVING TO SUFI MUSIC

A glorious loser in the Indian Idol contest, the Hyderabad-based singer N C Karunya nevertheless seems bent upon becoming the idol for millions.

After having the State swaying to his number Orugallu Pilla in Sainikudu and acquiring national fame with his Bollywood entry through Lage Raho Munnabhai, he will now be seen dancing around with pretty damsels and making love protestations in his latest Indipop album.

The album Karunya, his debut venture with Times Music, was released on Monday jointly by his Guru and uncle N C Murthy and producer of Sainikudu C Ashwini Dutt.

"The album is me, energetic and bubbly," the shy-faced youth said at the release function.

Through his album, Karunya said, he wanted to reach those millions who did not know of him.

He also urged music fans to abstain from downloading from the internet if they wanted the music industry to survive.

Composed by Leslie Lewis and directed by Madhu Sarkar, the album has nine songs along with a pin-up poster of the singer. It is available across the country at Rs 150.

...ABHIJEET GETS GROOVING TO SUFI MUSIC



Abhijeet Sawant became a star overnight after winning the show Indian Idol. And, cashing in on his popularity , he released an album, Aapka Abhijeet Sawant, and followed it up with a music video Mohabbatein Lutaunga. He has done playback singing too for half a dozen Hindi movies.

And now, he has come out with a new music video which is already creating waves. Talking about his latest album, he says, "It's a rock-based album with a touch of Sufi music. As our main target was the youth audience, it is very peppy and youthful."

Abhijeet has done playback singing for movies like Aashiq Banaya Aapne: Love Takes Over, Jawani Diwani, etc. So, how was the experience? "It was really good. When you are singing for an album, you are expressing your own thoughts, while playback singing is like putting across someone else's thoughts. It's just that when you are singing for films, the platform is bigger than an album. Still, personally, I like to do albums," says he.

Abhijeet says that he has become more professional now "than I used to be". "I never dreamt that I will become so successful. But, with success comes the pressure of responsibilities. So, now, I have the responsibility of completing the things I have started , making them successful , and maintaining the success ratio," he explains .

Considering that Abhijeet comes from a nonfilmy background, how difficult was it working in the film industry? "Initially, I was a tad intimidated by the filmy atmosphere. So, it took me some time to adjust. As I am new to this field, it will take me some time to establish myself as a playback singer. But, one day, I want to sing for Shah Rukh Khan."

And, who are his role models? "Kishore Kumar and Sonu Nigam are my idols in this field," he says. As far as music directors are concerned, Abhijeet literally worships A R Rahman . "He has such a command on each and every style of music -- it's admirable. Plus, he always keeps experimenting. According to me, he is the number one music director in the industry," he declares.

Sonu Nigam, Himesh Reshmmiya and a number of other playback singers have made forays into acting. Does he intend to follow in their footsteps? "There are offers, but I haven't given a thought to acting yet. First, I want to establish myself as a singer. Only then will I think about acting ," says he.

After Abhijeet won Indian Idol, it was reported that he received a lot of marriage proposals from his female fans. So, does he have any plans of getting married in the near future? "I am going to get married in a year's time. Most probably, it will be an arranged marriage, and that too to the girl of my parents' choice. For me, my parents' choice is very important," he says matter-of-factly.