MUMBAI: India’s first kids’ online live music reality show is heading towards its finale, which will be held on 22 and 23 December 2018 at 7:30 pm. And Anurag Verma, who is one of the top five finalists, is very confident about winning the trophy.

“Since I was rejected so many times in the past during auditions and couldn’t make it to TV, I was damn sure that I would reach the finale. I was adamant that the day I would reach a music reality show on TV, I would not only give my best shot but also win the show,” happy Anurag, who belongs to the North Zone team exclaims.

On being asked about his preparations for the show, he reveals, “Preparations for the finale are going good. Our mentor Navin Paji, (Navraj Hans sir), who is the captain of our North Zone team, is helping me in my preparations, giving tips on how to sing with confidence and not become nervous.”

“Navraj sir is very nice. While everyone knows that he is a very good singer, who is gifted with good looks and style, he is also a good natured person. He always keeps on telling us on how to sing. His father, Hansraj Hans is also a big singer. He tells us that he has learnt a lot from his father. Hence, it’s not necessary that you have to only learn from me because I am your captain, but you must also learn from the other three captains on the show,” tells Anurag, as he praises his mentor on the show, Navraj Hans.

On the songs, he will be singing during the upcoming finale, the youngster says, “Navraj sir always says that everyone sings songs of their genre, but a singer should always sing songs of other genres also. So, I will be singing songs, both, of my genre and other also.”

While Anurag is quite confident about winning the competition, he is also aware that the other four finalists are equally strong. He speaks on this, while revealing his toughest competitor, “The other finalists are very good, but if you ask me, who I find - a tough competitor, then it is Guru Kiran Hegde. He sings very nicely and croons classical also. He is also my best friend and has been a winner of a few shows.”

Anurag is also all praises for the other captains on the show, Abhijeet Sawant, Bhoomi Trivedi and Anusha Mani. “All the four captains are very nice, as well as the three judges. When I had received red chain for one of my performances, HR sir (Himesh Reshammiya) had given me his stole. Neha Bhasin ma’am is also very nice,” he says.

The budding singer also recalls his journey on the show as he says, “My Love Me India journey was very nice. I had done many reality shows before it, but I couldn’t reach TV through them. Hence, when I reached TV, through this show, I was extremely happy. Also, this show is live and we sing live, which is delightful.

He also shares some striking moments from the show, “I had not met my parents since last four months and when parents of other contestants used to come to meet them, I used get angry on my mom and ask her, ‘when you guys would come’. And recently, my parents gave me a surprise by coming to Mumbai, for the first time, and watching me perform. Another striking moment is when I received my first strut chair, I was very happy.”

Anurag Verma was rejected for about four-five times, during auditions, before getting selected show. The other four finalists, who will be competing for the trophy are Guru Kiran Hegde from Anusha Mani’s team (South Zone), Harshita Bhattacharjya and Stuti Jaiswal from Bhoomi Trivedi’s team (East Zone) and Mohammed Faiz from Abhijeet Sawant’s team (West Zone).

Meanwhile, the winner of Love Me India show will be announced on 23 December 2018. The show will be aired on &TV.