Simon Cowell booed by Heidi Klum and fans after rejecting brilliant 'AGT' act: 'Didn't excite me...'

Heidi Klum said, "I love that you bring us a little taste of your beautiful country here to America..."
PUBLISHED APR 23, 2025
(L-R) Screenshot of Simon Cowell from 'America's Got Talent'; Screenshot of contestant Praveen Prajapat from 'America's Got Talent' (Cover Image Source: (L-R) Facebook| from an episode 'America's Got Talent')
(L-R) Screenshot of Simon Cowell from 'America's Got Talent'; Screenshot of contestant Praveen Prajapat from 'America's Got Talent' (Cover Image Source: (L-R) Facebook| from an episode 'America's Got Talent')

Praveen Prajapat, who hailed from Rajasthan, India, appeared on 'AGT ' with a dream he had carried for 10 years. Ahead of his performance, Prajapat shared backstage that, "When I was 10 years old, my father taught me this. This act comes from a culture thousands of years old. I have trained two or three hours every day for the last 10 years just for this moment." And his act just proved his years of dedication and practice. When Prajapat placed 3 glasses of water on his head, everyone wondered what he was up to! Then he delicately balanced a clay pot over them. The next moment, Prajapat had the judges holding their breath as he continued to do some dance moves while balancing the fragile things on his head. 



 

However, the real shocker came when he upped the game by adding three more glasses with a clay pot still teetering over his head. Just when the audience thought that they had seen it all, Prajapat raised the stakes even higher. He placed each of his feet on a glass and began walking on the stage, leaving the judges speechless. Sofia Vergara and Heidi Klum seemed to have the most fun as they rose from their seats and shimmied over the vibrant Indian music that filled the air throughout the performance. But, as the act came to an end, Howie Mandel went first, "It is amazing. We've never seen anything like this before." He added, "What a season we are having because of people like you. I feel very lucky to be sitting in the room witnessing this."

Screenshot of contestant Praveen Prajapat from 'America's Got Talent'(Image Source: YouTube | from 'America's Got Talent’)
Screenshot of contestant Praveen Prajapat from 'America's Got Talent'(Image Source: YouTube | from 'America's Got Talent’)

Klum said, "I love that you bring us a little taste of your beautiful country here to America, and it was just beautiful to watch," she said. "It was super exciting, and you are just so handsome to look at." Vergara, too, was impressed. "It's so difficult to do what you were doing. It was one of the most amazing acts I've seen on AGT," she said. "I think you're going to do very well in this competition."


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Praveen Prajapat (@praveen_prajapat1)


 

But Simon Cowell was not fully convinced. "OK, well, look, I thought it was pretty amazing," he said. "I'm just wondering what you would do next," he asked. Prajapati replied promptly, "I have balanced 1 pot on my head this time, but I can balance 101 pots on my head." While judges' jaws dropped, Prajapat continued, "I can also balance 4 LP tanks on my head." Cowell continued. "I just think everything has to go up in the next phase." Mandel interrupted, "You don't think 100 pots is up from what we just saw?" Eventually, Cowell had made up his mind and told Prajapat, "I like you very, very much," he said. "However, I'm going to be honest, that didn't excite me enough, so I’m going to say no." "What are you talking about?" Vergara demanded, while Klum booed. 


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Sony Entertainment Television (@sonytvofficial)


 

Fans also slammed Cowell in the YouTube comments section; one wrote, "Simon wouldn't be able to balance just one glass on his head. I don't know what he was on about; the boy is incredible." Another added, "British people like Simon do not accept Indian talent because the independence and power of that great country hurt them.... Bravo, INDIA!!!... LOVE, PEACE, AND HARMONY FROM MÉXICO!!!!" "Simon, you spoil his smile because you don't know how hard this performance is," wrote the third. 


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Praveen Prajapat (@praveen_prajapat1)


 

Despite struggling to make his American dream come true, Prajapat has earned a huge fan base—over 595k followers solely on Instagram. His posts are filled with mind-bending balancing acts, which are proof of his earlier claims on the show. Prajapat has also been a part of 'India's Got Talent' Season 9,' where he wowed the judges with his Rajasthani Bhavai folk dance performance, as reported by TrendingAmerican.

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