Taking Sri Lankan teen talent to the next level

Securing their position in the industry as the number one Reality TV Channel, Sirasa TV will be holding the much awaited Grand Finale of the ‘The Voice Teens’ which will be held in two sessions, on August 1 and 2, 2020, which is sure to be one glamorous and a novel experience, bringing together the best of young talent on one stage.  

A press conference was held recently at the Stein Studios on this regard, to brief the Media of the star studded, spectacular event which will be aired for the enthusiastic audience worldwide. Priyantha Wijesinghe, Director Public Relations/MTV/MBC, Susara Dinal, CEO MTV, Nedra Weerasinghe, Group Director, EMB Capital Maharaja, and Chandana Sooriyabandara, CEO Stein Studios represented the organization along with the panel of judges for the event , Sanuka Wickramasinghe, Dumal Warnakulasuriya, Raini Charuka and Ashanthi De Alvis. They shared their experiences and also the challenges they have to face throughout the event as coaches and also as judges. A demonstrative performance was also showcased to the media with the selected participants performing on stage at the Stein Studios, which is highlighted as the largest production facility in South Asia.  

‘The Voice Teens’ global franchise was introduced to Sri Lanka by Sirasa TV, same as the Reality concept was introduced by them more than 10 years ago. Since then many TV channels have followed their path by initiating various types of talent shows on TV and introducing new talent to the music arena, and producing a lineup of several talented artistes to the Music arena. Sirasa TV has always been behind this process as the main contributor to introduce Reality TV to the Sri Lankan audience. The Voice Teens’’ is considered as one of the most successful TV formats with over 400 renowned coaches worldwide, which has created a worthy platform for thousands of aspiring singers, many who have gone onto have successful singing careers. This franchised reality program is produced over 185 countries, having the same international format and guide lines which are implemented.  

“We have been able to be the only channel producing world class franchise programs, and we have the capabilities and the state of the Art studio facility to do this. We also have a creative, enthusiastic and professional creative team, behind the productions at Stein Studios. Over the past two decades, we have done popular franchise shows, such as ‘Lakshapathi’, and now the ‘Voice Teens ’programme. We have acquired the rights to all the versions of ‘’Voice’’ .We started off with voice because we felt that we should do more for the industry , by giving the youth a unique platform for them to showcase their talent , introducing more talented singers to this industry,” said Nedra Weerasinghe, Group Director, EMB Capital Maharaja Group .  

Since the beginning of the series, several contestants have been featured on the Voice Global youtube channel bringing fame and recognition to the country through the talent of our youth. Another special feature of this programme is that for the first time in the Reality TV history of the country a contestant’s performance reached over 10 million youtube views and Shihangi Hansanjali was featured among the top 10 trending performances of the Voice.  

“When we started Voice Teen, we thought since we had done a large number of Reality shows, and we were the pioneers of introducing the Reality show concept to the country, which has now become so familiar to the Sri Lankan audience. Therefore we wanted to make a change in the concept. That’s how ‘’Voice Teen’’ came to the scene. As a country, we need to think how to take our music industry to the global platform. It’s a huge challenge. Sri Lanka has go enough talent even to be a challenge to a country like India. Our target is to introduce our youngsters to the global arena,” said Chandana Sooriyabandara, CEO, Stein studios.  

Along with the coaches Sanuka, Dumal, Raini and Ashanti, former Ms. Sri Lanka Stephanie Siriwardena hosts the ‘’Voice Teens’’ on Sirasa TV. With the selection of the best talent among thousands of aspiring applicants with some fantastic talent, the Voice Teens is indeed a game changer in local reality Television, with exiting and high quality production value to enhance your family weekend viewing. With over 165 million views and over nearly 500k Youtube subscription base, the Voice Teens Sri Lanka has also become the fastest growing Youtube and digital brand in the country, according to Social Blade. Voice Teens performances have ranked top 3 positions on Youtube.  

“Many reality shows programmes have been aired in Sri Lanka for 15 years, which is amazing. It was in 2005 we started Reality TV, by bringing Shihan Mihiranga, Ajith Bandara, Amila Perera and Malith Perera to the scene. Like how it introduced the Reality concept to the Sri Lankan audience in 2005, Sirasa wanted to take it to the next level in 2020. As a result, after carefully going through a proper selection process, we decided to select the brand ‘Voice’,” commented Susara Dinal , CEO MTV .  

“The world has changed a lot more than it was in 2005. Nowadays our Sri Lankan audiences have started to watch international programmes. So our management decided that we should acquire the ownership of ‘Voice’ franchise .I think that was a very good decision,” he added.   

As a leading media giant in Sri Lanka, Sirasa TV revolutionized the Media landscape 22 years ago and the journey continues, staying true and bringing the latest Reality TV experience to their loyal audiences who have been the pulse of their brand. Sirasa TV wishes to thank in their trust throughout the years, and this has been another great series where audiences are fully engaged with Sirasa TV on weekends to enjoy a top quality international program showcasing local talent. The Sri Lankan audience is yet to experience a most power packed and a magical event, showcasing young talent across the country, plus with variety and glamour.  

Pictures by Ranjith Asanka