Abhijeet Sawant reveals what he did with money made after Indian Idol, and why he was dissatisfied with it

Singer Abhijeet Sawant, who became the first winner of Indian Idol, spoke about the sudden influx of money and fame in his life, after he became an overnight sensation thanks to the show. He also spoke about having a house, cars, secure investments, but not being creatively satisfied.

In an interaction with writer Chetan Bhagat, Abhijeet said that at the peak of his fame, he was living out of a suitcase and would fly to shows almost on a daily basis. So hectic was his schedule that he would sleep in his car under his house for a couple of hours just to get a feel of home, before heading back to the airport for another show. 

Asked if he invested his money well, he said, “I invested well. It was around the time of the 2008 recession, so a lot of the money we’d saved here and there we were realigning. It was a cluster at that point, but I did save well. I bought a house we well, so it was okay. But I was working for money, and I still believe that was one of my biggest regrets.”

Asked to explain himself, Abhijeet said that before the Covid-19 pandemic, he was dissatisfied by his music, even though he was working well and making good money. “Maybe it’s my thinking, but when you’re running behind money, you have to compromise many things with your talent, your music, your knowledge. I realised that after 35-37, I don’t want to keep saying, ‘What to do, you have to compromise’.”

Also read: Abhijeet Sawant calls out Indian Idol: ‘They are more interested if contestant can polish shoes or not’

He also spoke about the culture of showing off in the industry, and admitted that he, too, gave in to it. He bought an expensive Rolex watch that wouldn’t even fit his wrist.

Abhijeet was caught in a controversy earlier this year, when he called out Indian Idol for favouring sob stories over actual singing talent.