"I was on the verge of crying while performing in front of Yesudas sir during 'Gandharva Sangeetham' Finale," recollects singer Sithara Krishnakumar

2019 was indeed the luckiest year for playback singer

Sithara Krishnakumar

. She tuned a singing sensation with back to back chartbusters.

But, Sithara Krishnakumar won a million hearts almost a decade ago. In 2004, a 17-year-old girl grabbed the title of '

Gandharva Sangeetham

', the prestigious reality show celebrating legendary singer K J Yesudas and she still enjoys a special place in the hearts of music lovers.

On this ‘

Throwback Thursday

’, Sithara Krishnakumar in a candid chat with TimesofIndia.com recollected the experiences of being a reality show winner and what it meant to her. The singer also shared her thoughts on being a reality show judge now.

"Singing in front of a large crowd and especially the legendary musician K J Yesudas is right in front was huge for me. I was on the verge of crying during my performance. Musician

M Jayachandran

sir still pulls my leg mentioning about my tension during the finale," Sithara recollects the finale of 'Gandharva Sangeetham 2004'.

Receiving the winner trophy from K J Yesudas still remains to one of her most cherished moments in her life. Sithara also mentioned that it was indeed the dream come true moment for her family too.

Besides 'Gandharva Sangeetham', Sithara was also the winner of popular music reality shows like, 'Voice', 'Sapthaswarangal', 'Mega Star' etc.

Interestingly, the proud reality show winner is currently seen as the judge in the popular music show for kids, 'Top Singer'. When asked about her excitement of sharing the judging panel with revered musicians, Sithara shared that reality shows are still learning platforms for her.

"Being in the judging panel offers so much to learn for me. I am able to understand the pressure that every contestant goes through and the tension their parents are undergoing,'' Sithara expresses.

Talking about her experience of judging young talents in the show, Sithara expressed that she feels blessed to witness such impeccable talents.

"I never try to mentor them. They have the thing within them, the only thing I can do as a judge is giving them the platform to flaunt it, encourage them to express without hesitation and suggest them how to polish the spark in them," she adds.

Sithara further opined that the contestants are more serious about reality shows of late while they were just like any other music competition back then when she participated.

"According to me, the best result of being a part of a reality show is not the fame or the exposure one gets. It is the time they invest in researching and practice for the show. It is just like a bank deposit, that will definitely support you in future," the singer signs off with a piece of advice for the young talents.