A glimpse into the musical journey of the judges of Indian Idol 12

Popular singing reality show, Indian Idol, has returned with the twelfth season to entertain music lovers across the country. Hosted by singer-actor, Aditya Narayan, Indian Idol 12 features Neha Kakkar, Vishal Dadlani, and Himesh Reshammiya as the judges of the panel. The jury earlier picked 32 singers across the country in the audition rounds. The final list of the top 14 contestants of Indian Idol 12 will be announced by the judges this weekend in the theatre round. As we are set to witness the brilliant performances of the shortlisted singers, here’s a brief introduction to the music.

Here’s all you need to know about the judges of Indian Idol 12:

#1 Vishal Dadlani

Best known for delivering chartbusters like Lungi dance and Dus Bahane among others, Vishal, along with Shekhar Ravjiani, has composed music for over 60 films and released over 300 songs. While the duo’s claim to fame was Jhankar Beats, it was Om Shanti Om that cemented their place in Bollywood. Though Vishal’s major collaborations have been with Shekhar, the former continues to work as a playback singer too. From the groovy ‘Desi Girl’ track in Dostana to the latest ‘Shaitan ka Shala’ in Housefull 4, the music composer has lent his voice to many memorable numbers.

#2 Neha Kakkar

After entering the film industry as a chorus singer, Neha Kakkar rose to prominence with the track ‘Second Hand Jawani’ from the movie Cocktail. Ever since, the singer has been entertaining millions of audiences by crooning several Hindi and Punjabi songs in her husky voice. The artist, who recently got hitched to her beau Rohanpreet Singh, had taken part in the second season of Indian Idol as a contestant in 2005. However, she was eliminated quite early from the show. As destiny would have it, she went on to become one of the judges of Indian Idol 12.

#3 Himesh Reshammiya

Composer-singer, Himesh Reshammiya began his career by composing songs for television until breaking into films with Salman Khan’s Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya in 1998. He turned out to be a game-changer for Bollywood movies with his new-age tunes. His collaboration with actor Emraan Hashmi delivered hit tracks like Jhalak Dikhla Ja and Aashiq Banaya Aapne back in the 2000s. Himesh made his acting debut with the film Aap Kaa Surroor in 2007 and produced a couple of films as well.