MUMBAI: Be it the free fun flowing 'Befikre' music to the soulful heart touching 'Channa Mereya', 2016 marked a year with a variable mix for the listeners. In an attempt to find out the best amongst the best the veterans from the Music world gathered for the Grand Jury Meet of the 9th Royal Stag Mirchi Music Awards in Mumbai today.

The jury included music legends such as Javed Akhtar (Jury Chairperson), Prasoon Joshi, Kavita Krishnamurthy, Sameer Anjaan, Irshad Kamil, Ramesh Sippy, Subhash Ghai, Sudhir Mishra, Madhur Bhandarkar, Anu Malik, Lalit Pandit, Louiz Banks, Suresh Wadkar, Shailendra Singh, Talat Aziz, Alka Yagnik, Sadhana Sargam, Saapna Mukerji, Ila Arun, Pritam, Milind Srivastava, Pankaj Udhas, Anuradha Paudwal, Sulaiman Merchant, Udit Narayan, Raju Singh, Roop Kumar Rathod, Shaan and Vijay Krishna Acharya. They screened the nominations to judge the winners across various categories.

The winners of the 9th Royal Stag Mirchi Music Awards will be announced at a grand award ceremony on 18 February 2017 in Mumbai.

Announcing the 9th edition, Radio Mirchi CEO Prashant Panday said, “Radio Mirchi believes in celebrating music throughout the year and this year was graced by some really amazing numbers. The stature of this ceremony is due to the very talented and expert Jury who sit with decades of experience vigorously to select the best music across various genres that we heard in 2016”.

Talking about his association, Jury chairperson Javed Akhtar said, “I have been associated with the Mirchi Music Awards for many years. The music industry has witnessed an emergence of creative minds who are young talented souls bringing fresh talent to us. Each entry is special in its own rhythm and I wish everyone good luck”

Kavita Krishnamurthy, Jury chairperson said,“My association with Mirchi Music Awards goes back many years. Every year we witness the emergence of new talent which brings freshness and innovation in the industry. Even people who have been here for a long time are exploring new and creative routes. The nominations this year were outstanding and I wish everyone the very best!”