Indian Idol 11 winner Sunny Hindustani was once a shoeshiner, his audition left Anand Mahindra emotional - Hindustan Times
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Indian Idol 11 winner Sunny Hindustani was once a shoeshiner, his audition left Anand Mahindra emotional

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | By
Feb 24, 2020 02:08 PM IST

Indian Idol 11 winner Sunny Hindustani has come a long way from his shoe-shining days to lifting the Indian Idol trophy. Here’s looking back at his inspiring journey.

Even Indian Idol 11 winner Sunny Hindustani would not have imagined how his life would turn around in just a span of a couple of month. The shoeshiner from Punjab walked into the auditions of Indian Idol last year and began his journey from rags to riches and countrywide love and acclaim.

Indian Idol 11 winner Sunny Hindustani’s journey is nothing less than inspiring.
Indian Idol 11 winner Sunny Hindustani’s journey is nothing less than inspiring.

On Sunday, Sunny was crowned winner of the hit singing reality show. However, the winner’s trophy and 25 lakh prize money isn’t all that he is taking home with him. Sunny’s story has inspired fans all over the country who took to social media to congratulate him. “What a story. This is called The Indian Idol dream,” wrote one fan. Even Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh sent his wishes. “Happy about talented #Punjab boy #SunnyHindustani winning the #IndianIdolGrandFinale. @sunny_singer11 you have made us all proud. Congratulations and wishing you all the success ahead,” he tweeted.

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Sunny began raking in fans and followers ever since he made his debut on the show. His audition tape was shared by Anand Mahindra on Diwali in October, which went viral. “Diwali is the perfect day to learn about people who Rise. A friend sent me this saying he was in tears watching it. Find the whole clip on YouTube & I challenge you to remain dry-eyed. TV & social media have done us a great service: Discovering talent in the humblest locations,” Mahindra had tweeted.

 

In his audition video, co-judge Neha Kakkar asks Sunny what he does for a living. Sunny tells the judges that he is a shoeshiner while his mother sells balloons in Punjab. “It would hurt me so much to watch my mother beg people for rice,” he had said. “I would sing while shining shoes and always thought to myself that I will make something of myself,” he added. After his introduction, Sunny auditioned with a stunning rendition of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s Afreen Afreen and launched himself into the hearts of his fans.

Sunny’s family lives in a two-room house with a makeshift kitchen at Amarpura Basti, a rather dingy locality of the city. Talking to Hindustan Times in October, Sunny’s mother had said he was inclined towards music and singing from childhood and she and her husband never discouraged him.

“Recognising Sunny’s interest in the music, his father had even gifted him a harmonium,” she said. “He himself applied for Indian Idol audition in Chandigarh. I am happy that his talent is being recognised. After the death of Sunny’s father we had a debt of around 2.50 lakh. We had to sell our house and bought land here and somehow managed to construct two rooms. The power connection was disconnected after we could not deposit the electricity bill,” she said.

 

Sunny told HT he was fond of music right from childhood and would sing at religious events. “Our family used to go to a religious place in Sangria in Rajasthan where qawwalis were sung by artists. I liked qawwalis of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. When I was 11 years old, I was singing in a street and some people recognised my talent and made me sing on the stage,” he said.

“My father Nanak Ram was also a singer and used to sing in fairs besides polishing shoes outside the bus stand. After his death in 2014, I took up the boot polishing work to feed the family. I had to drop out of school after Class 6. But I continued to practise music at home,” he added.

He soon became one of the most beloved contestants on the show for his humble attitude and great singing skills. In December, he even made his playback singing debut with Emraan Hashmi’s film The Body. Sunny lent his voice to the track Rom Rom.

On getting an opportunity to sing in the film, Sunny had said: “I don’t have enough words to thank Indian Idol and Vishal Dadlani sir because of them my dream for singing for a movie got fulfilled, I never thought I could ever sing for a movie but Indian Idol made this dream of mine reality.”

 

He also shared how he got on board for The Body. “Samir sir was looking for someone who can sing this song, Rom Rom from The Body and when he asked Vishal sir if he can suggest some one, he suggested my name. He made him watch some performance videos of mine, prior that I went to his studio for the trial. After listening to my voice he thought i suited well for the song and that’s how I landed the song,” Sunny added.

Even singer Himesh Reshammiya, who replaced Anu Malik as a judge on the show, signed Sunny for a song in Rajkumar Santoshi’s upcoming film. “I have been a follower of the show and have heard Sunny sing on television but listening to you live made me fall for your singing even more. The honesty with which you sing is clearly visible in your eyes and I advise you to not loose it. This is what is going to make you successful,” Himesh had said.

After winning the trophy, Sunny told The Indian Express, “I had not thought of getting through the first round, leave alone winning the competition. I have come a long way and can’t believe that the journey has just started. From getting the opportunity to sing on such a big platform to winning the show is like all my dreams come true. I will always be thankful to the judges for mentoring and guiding me and to Sony Entertainment Television for giving me a platform to perform in front of legends of the music industry and an opportunity to meet so many stars. I can’t believe that the whole of India heard my voice and voted for me wholeheartedly to make me Desh ki Awaaz.”

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