Bollywood actress Poonam Dhillon was all praise for “Indian Idol 13” contestant Navdeep Wadali and said that he is a true representative of his Wadali Gharana.
Navdeep is the grandson of the most popular Sufi singer and qawwal Puranchand Wadali, who, along with Pyarelal Wadali, have been famous as the Wadali Brothers from Amritsar.
While applauding Navdeep for his rendition of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s iconic song “Piya Re Piya Re”, Poonam said: “Today he has proved that he belongs to a renowned Gharana. Although I have never listened to the Wadali brothers live but as their representative, you were brilliant.
“I have been lucky enough to be in the audience during a live performance of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Saab. Now I feel like there is one more magnificent artiste coming up, having listened to you.”
Poonam is known for her films like “Sohni Mahiwal”, “Red Rose”, “Teri Kasam”, “Nishana”, “Yeh Vaada Raha”, and paired with Bollywood superstar Rajesh Khanna in movies such as “Dard”, “Nishaan”, “Zamana”, “Awam”, and “Jai Shiv Shankar”.
Zeenat Aman, who appeared as a celebrity guest along with Poonam on the singing reality show, added: “Navdeep you are a brilliant performer. When you sing, you sing for the love of music and that comes through to us. Honestly, I am happy that I got the chance to listen to you live. You’re too good.”
“Indian Idol 13” airs on Sony Entertainment Television.
