New Delhi, 14th September, 2016 – Max Life Insurance, one of India’s leading life insurance companies has launched albums of the winners, Tannishtha Puri (Junior category) and Maithili Thakur (Senior category) of ‘i-genius Young Singing Stars’ Season 2 in association with Universal Music India. Season 2 saw participation from over 1 lakh children across three age groups - Primary- 4-7 years, i-genius Junior - 8 – 11 years and i-genius Senior - 12-15 years.
The proud winner in the Junior Category, Tannishtha Puri, launched her album entitled ‘Saawre’ and Maithili Thakur, winner in the Senior Category launched her album ‘Ya Rabba’. Both albums were a compilation of all original compositions by passionate entrepreneur turned music composer, Shameer Tandon, who has worked with all living legends of Bollywood like Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle who lent their voices to his National Award winning hit compositions like Kitne Ajeeb Rishtey, Hazoor E Ala (Page 3).
The Runners’ up album titled ‘Classics Revisited II’ featured performances from Chahat Malhotra, Sonakshi Kar, Chirag Kotwal, Chelsy Behura, Keerthana Chandra, Arth Kumar and Harmanpreet Singh has also been released. This album includes renditions of various covers that have been harmoniously crafted in a manner that showcases each child’s vocal strengths. The music on this album has been remixed by renowned DJ and Music Producer- DJ AKS.
All three albums, ‘Saawre’, ‘YaRabba’ and ‘Classics Revisited II’ are now available worldwide across all platforms.
The i-genius Young Singing Stars was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for aspiring and talented young singing stars between the ages of 4-15 years to be discovered. The brand ambassadors and jury for this programmed were none other than India’s musical sensations Salim Merchant and Shraddha Sharma.
Speaking on this occasion, Manik Nangia, Director and Chief Digital Officer, Max Life Insurance said, “We are proud to give children the opportunity to live out their dreams on a platform like the i-genius Young Singing Stars. A national platform like this also provides the children to have their voices heard by industry stalwarts with the ultimate prize of winning a prestigious record deal with the Universal Music Group. As a company that believes in securing the future of families, we are happy to be a part of and also provide these young stars with a stepping stone to fulfilling their potential.”
Speaking on this occasion, Devraj Sanyal, Managing Director & CEO, Universal Music Group South Asia said " Our partnership with Max Life insurance has been one that is very close to my heart and this platform has been extremely rewarding right from inception. I-genius Young Singing Stars is instrumental in reminding us time and again of the untapped potential this country has, and I have nothing but admiration for these young kids that have been discovered and rewarded through it. We are committed to making top-notch music and the winners of the second edition, Maithili Thakur and Tannishtha Puri, have been an absolute delight to work with and have delivered beyond our expectations. It feels great to see the final product coming to fruition in such great way and gives me immense pleasure to announce the album of these two extremely talented kids along with the runners up.
Salim Merchant, leading Indian music director and singer said, “The second edition has proven that i-genius Young Singing Stars is an exemplary platform for finding talent from all over the country. This season we saw an enormous pool of talent coming from all parts of the country. I feel such pride in announcing the albums of winners of this season - Maithili Thakur and Tannishtha Puri. It has truly been a great journey during which tough choices had to be made but finally the top talent has emerged and shown us why we made the right choice through their singing. I am extremely happy and satisfied with what this season has produced."
Shraddha Sharma, Singer and YouTube Sensation said, “i-genius Young Singing Stars, yet again, has shown us that age is never a barrier. I have seen some of the best performances this season and it was such a pleasure mentoring these kids. I could see so much determination from participants of such a young age that it inspired me at every level. Every finalist had their own story and these albums should motivate all other kids out there to chase their dreams. It gives me immense joy to be able to play a part in discovering and moulding these young kids to be the singers of the next generation. "
About i-genius Young Singing Stars Season 2
The participation for i-genius Young Singing Stars Season 2 was open to all children from 4 years to 15 years of age in three categories: i-genius Primary- 4-7 yrs, i-genius Junior - 8 – 11 yrs and i-genius Senior - 12-15 years from all over India. The programme ran in four phases-:
• Phase 1: Interested participants registered online at www.igenius.org or physical registration forms were also available at all Max Life offices
o The above was followed by a one minute audio submission on IVR number 92500 32222 or via an online widget on www.igenius.org
• Phase 2: Digital Auditions were held in select cities in each region through video-conferencing which were then evaluated by the jury
• Phase 3:Selected kids received mentoring from the Brand Ambassadors
• Phase 4 (Finale): After receiving training from the mentors, the kids performed at a grand finale event where one winner was selectedfrom Junior & Senior Group and won an albumrecording contract with UniversalMusic Group and 4 finalists each from Junior & SeniorGroup wona contract for a single song. 5 top winners from Primary group were featured in a special music video. Additionally, 600 winners received CD Hampers as consolation prizes.
About i-genius (http://www.igenius.org)
Max Life Insurance launched the annual i-genius Scholarship in 2010 with a vision to promote all round talent among children. It is corporate India's largest scholarship programme that has been able to connect with over 20 lakh children in just four years and has awarded Scholarships worth over Rs. 4 crore to over 5000 children. Last year Max Life launched a unique initiative called the i-genius Young Authors Hunt, where a book titled i-genius A Twist in the Tale with 50 best stories was published. Max Life Insurance also anchors a unique parenting community on facebook with over 3.64 Lakh members who engage regularly on various aspects of parenting.
About Max Life Insurance Co. Ltd.
Max Life Insurance, the leading non-bank promoted private life insurer, is a joint venture between Max Financial Services Ltd. and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd. Max Financial Services Ltd. is part of the Max Group, which is a leading Indian multi-business corporation, while Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance is a member of MS&AD Insurance Group, which is amongst the leading insurers in the world. Max Life Insurance offers comprehensive long term savings, protection and retirement solutions through its high quality agency distribution and multi-channel distribution partners. A financially stable company with a strong track record over the last 15 years, Max Life Insurance offers superior investment expertise. Max Life Insurance has the vision 'To be the most admired life insurance company by securing the financial future of our customers'. The company has a strong customer-centric approach focused on advice-based sales and quality service delivered through its superior human capital.
About Universal Music India:
Universal Music India Pvt. Ltd. (UMIPL) is a 100% subsidiary of the Universal Music Group (UMG) and is home to record labels such as A&M Records, Blue Note Records, Capitol Records, Capitol Records Nashville, Caroline, Decca, Def Jam Recordings, Deutsche Grammophon, Emarcy, Geffen Records, Interscope Records, Island Records, Machete Music, MCA Nashville, Mercury Records, Motown Records, Polydor Records, Republic Records, Universal Music Latino, Verve Music Group, Virgin Records, Virgin EMI Records.
UMIPL has an extremely rich Indian catalogue comprising songs from classic Hindi and Regional Films, IndiPop, Bhangra, Ghazals and Devotional. It’s enviable catalogue includes artistes such as Asha Bhosle, AnupJalota, Bombay Vikings, Jagjit Singh, JoSh, Malkit Singh, Pankaj Udhas, Panjabi MC, Raghav, MohitChouhan, Euphoria, Adnan Sami, Rabbi Shergill, RahatFateh Ali Khan to name a few. UMIPL `film’ catalogue (the 2nd largest in India) spans music from blockbusters such as Sholay, Qurbani, Amar Akbar Anthony, ChoriChoriChupkeChupke, Devdas and Munnabhai MBBS amongst the numerous jewels which symbolize the musical journey from the 70’s to date. On the International music front, UMIPL are the clear market leaders with artistes such as ABBA, Bon Jovi, Bryan Adams, Enrique Iglesias, Eminem, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, The Beatles, UB40, Deep Purple, Enigma, Norah Jones, Deadmau5, The Chemical Brothers, amongst host of others, popular music icons and household names in India.