Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs 2009 contestant Hemant Brijwasi wins singing reality show Rising Star 2

After months of soulful performances and heartfelt renditions, singing reality show Rising Star 2 found its winner in Hemant Brijwasi, who went home with the prestigious trophy and a cash prize of Rs 20 lakh. The former Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li’l Champs winner got the better of fellow participants Vishnumaya, Zaid Ali and Rohanpreet as he got the maximum votes in the round with 88 per cent votes for his performance of Saanware, according to India Today. Zaid Ali was eliminated first in the round after which a close competition ensued between Brijwasi, Vishnumaya (who got 85 per cent votes) and Rohanpreet (who got 83 per cent votes).

The live voting show, which had marquee judges this season in Monali Thakur, Shankar Mahadevan and Diljit Dosanjh, had earned much praise for its quality of talent on show, reported The Indian Express. The two-day finale episode witnessed six finalists competing for the top prize but the Akhtar Brothers and Chetan Brijwasi were eliminated on Saturday night itself. There were performances other than those of the participants as well with Alia Bhatt singing on Saturday while the three judges performed a special medley on Sunday night. The finale was also the venue for a huge announcement by Colors which opened the auditions for the twelfth season of reality TV juggernaut Bigg Boss, reported Zee News. The news came with a further surprise as the announcers said that this time jodis would take part in the show instead of individuals as was the norm in the earlier format.