Indian Idol 11 winner: Meet Sunny Hindustani, a shoe shiner, who even impressed businessman Anand Mahindra
Sunny Hindustani won the country with his singing talent on Indian Idol 11. He got the maximum votes on the finale night. Besides bagging the trophy, Sunny even took home a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh. He defeated top-notch competitors - Rohit Raut, Adriz Ghosh, Ankona Mukherjee and Ridham Kalyan - and emerged victorious. His victory has inspired many. (Photo: Instagram)
Shoe shiner
In his audition round, Sunny shared that he earned his living by polishing boots. He said his mother was a balloon seller and it upset him every time she had to beg people for rice.
Dreaming big
That's when Sunny decided to make it big in life. He confessed that he didn't have any formal training in music but learnt it all by listening to music on phone. He shared in his audition round he dreams of making it big in life. (Photo: Twitter)
Audition round impresses Anand Mahindra
Business tycoon Anand Mahindra shared Sunny Hindustani's audition round, where the singer revealed his story of struggle and also impressed the judges with his rendition of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's Afreen Afreen. Mahindra tweeted, "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." (Photo: Twitter)
Hailing from a small town
Sunny hails from Amarpura Basti, Bhatinda in Punjab. He lives in a small house with a makeshift kitchen. The singer's fought extreme poverty and reached the Indian Idol stage with the hope to fulfill his dreams. And surely his victory has come as a huge reward. (Photo: Twitter)
On his victory
Ecstatic and overwhelmed with his win, Sunny Hindustani said, "I had not thought of getting through the first round also, 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." (Photo: Twitter)
Expressing gratitude
He added, "I will always be thankful to the judges for mentoring and guiding me and to the channel 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." (Photo: Instagram)
Punjab Chief Minister congratulates Sunny
Even the Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh congratulated Sunny and tweeted, "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!" Several other users poured in their wishes for the singer.