Shankar, Ehsaan, Papon to judge battle of Indian bands

Mumbai, June 13 (IANS) Musicians Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani, Loy Mendonsa, Raghu Dixit and Papon are set to judge the third edition of Sennheiser Top 50, a battle of Indian bands.

The battle will be among four different zones - North (Delhi), South (Bengaluru), East (Shillong) and West (Pune), read a statement.

The winner will get a two-year endorsement by Sennheiser which will give them access to the brand's gear by being the face of the brand for the next year, in addition to prizes worth Rs 20 lakh.

"Music is an integral part of the fabric of India and the northeast is no exception. Assam, where I was born and a place I proudly call home, has a lot of talented musicians and bands waiting for the right platform to help them turn their dreams into reality," Papon said.

"I really hope that all the talent out there in northeast gets recognised and we have a winner from my region," he added.

The registration for the battle started on June 1 and will end on July 1, while the grand finale will take place here.

Sennheiser Top 50 will have musicians performing across all genres like pop, rock, fusion, classic, metal, jazz and blues.

This is the third edition of the battle.

"There is great talent in the country and we want to offer them the right platform to showcase it," said Vipin Pungalia, Director at Sennheiser Professional Segment India.