If not her songs, Neha Kakkar’s statements tend to break the internet. Her recent comments come amid a debate over the authenticity of singing reality shows, after Sunidhi Chauhan questioned how genuine the format remains and spoke about performances being edited or manipulated, as well as makers asking judges to promote specific contestants. Neha was also asked about Indian Idol’s dipping ratings and whether the show’s performance had been affected by her absence.

Neha says, “I found it very demeaning when I was asked about Indian Idol’s dipping ratings and whether it was scripted. I just said, ‘It’s not my fault if it’s not working. Main nahi kar rahi hoon toh nahi chal raha hai toh main kya karu? Main jab karti thi tab toh superhit hi tha’. That’s what happened.”

The singer also weighs in on the use of contestants’ personal struggles and sob stories to influence audiences, arguing that such stories can help viewers understand the journeys behind the performers, as long as they do not overshadow talent.

Neha says, “Majority of people come from middle-class backgrounds, toh unke paas apni journey aur struggles ki stories hoti hain. They don’t own businesses or have the money to release singles or make their own videos, so they turn to platforms and people who can promote them aur unka saath de. If we bring their stories to the forefront, there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, people should know about the challenges they have faced and see how far they have come. Having said that, kabhi bhi talent se badi story toh nahi hoti hai. Talent is always the most important thing and should remain so.”

In the reality-show space, the Kala Chashma singer, who has judged singing reality shows such as Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li’l Champs, the 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th seasons of Indian Idol, and Superstar Singer - Season 3, is currently seen as a mentor on I-POPSTAR Vol 2. The show focuses on artistes who write and perform their own music, something she believes is particularly important for independent musicians.

She says, “Independent music has always been very important to me because I have built my career through it. When only a handful of music labels were operating, my brother Tony (Kakkar) and I started our own channel and began creating independent music, which did very well. But for other artistes, it was, and still is, difficult to get their music heard by an audience. That’s where I-POPSTAR comes into the picture. Unlike the other singing reality shows I have been part of, where contestants mostly sing covers, this is the only one where they write, compose and sing their own music. If they are good and their songs are great, no one can stop them from going viral.”