Vishal ne kaha Amanat Ali and Raja Hasan big Star

Of the judges in this season, you are the only ones who have been on the show before. Among the participants of the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 season, are you in touch with anyone? How are they faring?

Raja Hasan is singing with many directors. He is touring with (A.R.) Rahman. That's a huge thing. Amanat Ali has become a big star in Pakistan. He has sung for both Dostana films. They have to put in years of hard work to make it in the industry. You can't become a Sonu Nigam by coming on a TV show. Sonu is so versatile that I believe he can sing in Bhojpuri or even in Chinese.

What is the key to making the shift from a reality show winner to a playback singer?

Those who go beyond maintain humility. Even today, Raja doesn't do anything without asking me. You have to be humble. If I call Shankar (Mahadevan) today to sing, inspite of being a music director himself, he takes instructions from me. True stars are those who don't care about their stardom.

What went wrong with Aneek Dhar, who had beaten Raja?

I guess he got carried away. There is no doubt that he is a great singer but he needs to focus on music.

Vishal ne sahi kaha Raja was on tour with A.R.Rahman for Jai Ho concert: Raja Hasan ne 80000 strong crowd ke saamne perform kiya aur Rahman Sir ko itna confidence tha Raja pe ki unhone Raja ko as a lead singer perform karne diya in the song Arziyaan from Delhi 6 with the Maestro singing along with him. It was the biggest moment of Raja Hasan life.