I feel so overwhelmed when I am still greeted by strangers on the airports and in the restaurants saying they remember my singing from Saregamapa on Zee Marathi. Such is the power and popularity of reality TV Shows. Along with Saregama Marathi I was also a part of Maharashtra Sangeet Ratna, Star Voice of India and Zee TV Hindi Saregamapa. I was a part of this arena when social media wasn’t a thing and that is why, I feel we were blessed in a way to make that experience more meaningful

There are mixed opinions and emotions when it comes to reality shows. It is a long discussion for some day but today I am here to share 10 things that these 4 reality shows taught me.

1. It is not easy to be the centre of attention for the crowd. You have to build up a personality to carry that attention
2. You have only 3 mins to sing what you have practiced for years.
3. It takes hours and days for the shooting schedule and you have to be physically fit along with holding mental strength
4. Warm up time is not always available You should be so proficient in your music that you should be able to sing perfectly at any given time in the day even if it is 2 am
5. You have to learn to be a good observer as there is so much to learn from your co-participants
6. This is a place to realise and understand that there are so many talented people out there are you are not alone
7. The world is not an ideal place and competitions invite politics. You have to learn to focus on your strengths and ignore the things beyond your control
8. Singing is just one part of the game. There is so much to learn here like : how the camera works, how the scripts are written, what is editing, why it is done and so on.
9. Talent will take you places but sincerity and hard work added to it will accelerate your growth
10. This is the place to develop your confidence and build your personality as a singer/vocalist!

A lot of people used to ask me after the reality shows, what next? I didn’t have an answer then but I do have it now.

While building a career as a performing artist, I have also written and composed a few songs in the past couple of years. Since these are original compositions, they mean a lot to me, If you could give them a listen too, I will be so happy. Here is the list : https://saeetembhekar.com/musicalwork/saees-originals/