Pawandeep Rajan from Uttrakhand wins Indian Idol season 12

Pawandeep Rajan is the winner of Indian Idol 12, took home Rs 25 lakh, a car and trophy

Indian Idol 12 winner is Pawandeep Rajan. The talented singer won the show’s 12-hour grand finale on Sunday, defeating Arunita Kanjilal and Sayli Kamble as runners-up.

Indian Idol 12 has finally won by Pawandeep Rajan after almost nine months of waiting. The ‘Greatest Grand Finale’, which began at 12 noon on Independence Day, concluded with judges Himesh Reshammiya, Anu Malik and Sonu Kakkar handing over a gleaming trophy, a car and a check of Rs 25 lakh to the champion Pawandeep.

Talking about his journey on the show, Pavandeep told indianexpress.com, “Indian Idol is a platform that gives a lot of respect to artists, and the kind of exposure you get is unmatched. During the show, we got to sing a lot of songs, and we had the best judges and guests to guide us. The reason I came back to the arena was not my desire to win but my desire to learn. And I am thankful that after spending so many months on this show, we are now ready for playback.”

Among the top 6 finalists, Arunita Kanjilal and Sayli Kamble were declared the 1st and 2nd runners-up respectively and were awarded a check of Rs. 5 lakhs respectively. The third and fourth runners-up Mr. Danish and Nihal Touro were awarded a check of Rs. 3 lakhs respectively. All the top 6 finalists got a check of Rs. 75,000 from Raj Superwhite Soap and Gift hampers from Colgate and Denver respectively.

Marking the 75th episode of one of the longest running singing reality shows, the finale saw some breathtaking performances by the top six contestants – Pawandeep Rajan, Arunita Kanjilal, Mohd Danish, Nihal Tauro, Sayli Kamble and Shanmukhpriya.

He was joined by acclaimed singers Sukhwinder Singh, Mika Singh, Amit Mishra, Kumar Sanu, Javed Ali, Alka Yagnik, Udit Narayan, who enthralled the audience with their melodious performances.

The 12-hour finale was also attended by guests like Shershaah’s cast Sidharth Malhotra, Kiara Advani, WWE Champion Khali, Bade Achhe Lagte Hain lead pair Nakuul Mehta and Disha Parmar.

Television’s popular couple Bharti Singh and Harsh Limbachiyaa joined the team for a special segment and took everyone apart. South star Vijay Deverakonda also sent a video message for his favorite Shanmukhpriya, making the young singer blush. The grand finale was co-hosted by Aditya Narayan and Jay Bhanushali.