Season 15 of Indian Idol was touted as Bengal’s season from the get-go. As many as seven contestants in the top 16 were Bengalis. The top five who made it to the finals after a 24-week journey on air also included three from Bengal — Manasi Ghosh, Subhajit Chakraborty and Priyanshu Datta. Finally it was Manasi and Subhajit, the mooh-bola bhai-behen jodi, who were left holding hands as host Aditya Narayan read out the winner’s name. It was 24-year-old Manasi, “Idol ki crazy girl”, who was crowned Indian Idol, handed a replica of a cheque for Rs 25 lakh and a symbolic key to a new sedan.

Manasi’s schedule the day after she landed in Calcutta with the trophy was crazy. Her house in Nimta Paikpara Bazar, near Belghoria, was besieged by Youtubers and TV channel crew. Her mother Soma had taken refuge in the outermost room that doubles as thakur ghor and boshar ghor.

“This is that room,” she says, when The Telegraph reminded her of her tearful narration on the show of how the family had to take shelter in a single room when they were deprived of a share in the adjoining ancestral house after her father-in-law’s death. “Manasi has helped us build two more rooms on this floor and one above. She also bought a Maruti Zen in 2016. But when she goes for shows, I rent a big car for her. Manasi has been earning since she was 13. She does not touch money. I deal with show organisers,” said Soma.

Her parents put life on hold to support Manasi in her Indian Idol journey. Manasi’s father Manab left his electronic goods shop — Manasi Electronics — in the care of his brother-in-law and both set off for Mumbai. “She had got an offer to act in a serial after Super Singer (a Star Jalsha music show where she came runner-up). But we refused. My daughter says music is her Plan A. She has no Plan B.”

It was only after witnessing Manasi win that they returned to prepare for their daughter’s grand arrival. Manasi came home the day after the final was telecast in an open jeep wearing a garland and a floral wreath, all arranged by her mother, leading a rally from Nimta Bazar.

“She loves to cook but I don’t let her any more. Who knows if oil would sputter and cause a burn scar,” the doting mother said as the champion walked into the room.

The curly-haired girl has not only won hearts with her singing but also impressed with her razor-sharp repartees that often took celebrity guests and judges aback. Over to Manasi, the first girl from Bengal to win Indian Idol, and the second overall (after Prashant Tamang in 2007).

It’s been a while since the Indian Idol finals took place. How was that moment when your name was announced?

My mind had gone blank. I had gone to Indian Idol determined to reach the final. But I did not dream of winning the contest. The only thing that I had in my mind was to call my family to the stage. People tell me that I did not react. But why must I laugh or jump to prove I am reacting? That I am not doing anything is also a reaction.

Was the victory then a bolt from the blue?

When I say I did not expect to win that does not mean I did not believe in myself. Of course, I did. All of us in the Top 6, in fact the Top 10, were good enough to win. But I did not take the pressure on myself. Till two minutes before the result was announced I was singing. My focus was on the notes I wanted to hit.

Had you been a judge, would your Top 6 have been any different?

Everyone in the Top 6 was deserving. But if I could add a name to the Top 6, I’d have chosen Mayuri (Saha) di, who I believe is a brilliant singer. Shreyadi (Ghoshal) had handed her a platinum mic. That meant a direct entry to the top 15 from the studio round audition.

Your Sheila ki jawani performance, which made Vishal Dadlani offer you a live show on a Vishal-Sekhar night, was flawless. Which performances would you rate after that?

My choices would be based on my hardships in learning the song, how much I could do with it... After Sheila ki jawani, I’d rank Yeh dil deewana as my best performance along with Ankh maare. I had punched Bin tere sanam with Ankh maare and used thumri. Amar nijer geye bhalo legechhe. Sir (groomer Anand Sharma, who features with her in her WhatsApp display picture) had done the planning, and the band and I executed it perfectly. I’d also like to keep Aa zara kareeb se, the song I sang in the theatre round, alongside Sheila ki jawani.

Are improvements made in the post-production stage?

The recording happens in a single take. Since we are singing on such a big stage on an open mic, capturing raw sound, there is a basic mix. That is all that is done. If we sing a song badly and the judges comment negatively on that, the song might not even be mixed but played exactly as it was sung. Otherwise, the performance and the comments would not match.

How much was scripted? The camera had caught Hema Malini with what seemed like a script.

I had to keep in my head the questions I’d ask (the celebrity guests) in my interviews. The judge’s comments would come on the spot and we’d react accordingly. Maybe, for the celebrities who came, they’d have something noted down so they would remember to mention it, just as you have made notes (pointing to The Telegraph’s notebook). The judges were not taught anything.

Your Q&A with celebrities became very popular. The way you faced the formidable Kangana Ranaut and asked her tough questions takes guts!

Even I felt that I could have been a journalist (chuckles). She is a personality who you may or may not like but you cannot ignore. But I did not find her intimidating at all. Maybe it was because she treated me well.

At what stage did the channel start tapping you beyond music?

In the audition itself, my chulbuli personality was evident and they caught on immediately. It worked out to my advantage and in the channel’s favour.

Your retort to Akshay Kumar asking you if you wanted a husband like him — “Aap as a pati kaise ho humko kaise maloom hoga?” — has launched a thousand Reels. Later, Akshay caught you slyly reducing the speed of the treadmill when you thought he was not looking. Were such acts spontaneous?

They were. How would I know what kind of a husband he is! So I said that. When I was put on the treadmill, he threatened to increase the speed as he kept answering my questions. So I thought instead of gasping later, it would be wise to slow down the speed he had set.

Did you get to interact with the guests after the shoot?

There was no time. We did click pictures with some. Sukhwinder (Singh) sir asked me where he could get my number from. Everyone was friendly, especially the veteran singers (Sukhwinder, Abhijeet, Udit Narayan, Nitin Mukesh and Kavita Krishnamurthi). Hema Malini ma’am has a personality. It was admirable how, at the age of 72, she sat through the entire episode, giving her comments on each performance. I also clicked pictures with Karan (Johar) sir, Abhishek Bachchan, Remo D’ Souza... I am a big fan of Remo sir.

Was it a pressure to sing a song in front of its composer.

I did not take that pressure. I was confident about pulling off Sheila ki jawani though Vishal sir was there. He was so happy that he asked me to perform on stage with him.

But he had an accident soon.

Yes. On the show’s last day, he said: “Manashi, I owe you a concert. May be in the coming winter...”

Since when did you target competing in a reality show?

My mother had no such thoughts when she enrolled me for music classes at the age of three. My first teacher was Papia Samaddar in our locality, followed by Sourav Ghoshal and Acharya Jayanta Bose. Now I train at the music school Lalit Kala, under Simanta Sarkar. Baba takes me twice a month for special classes in Kendua, two hours away.

You became runner-up in Super Singer 3 in 2021-22. Did that experience help?

Yes. I was singing on stage for years before that. My first professional show was when I was 13. I got paid Rs 500. After Super Singer, I wanted to sing on national television.

Your playback debut has already happened.

Yes. Lalit (Pandit) sir offered me the title track of Manu Kya Karega on the show. I was called to record the very next day. Shaan sir had already sung his part. I did mine in less than an hour. It was my kind of song.

What next?

We have the UK and Rotterdam tours coming up. In between, I have some recordings and I have to search for a house in Bombay. Life is busy!