What is your family’s reaction?
It is like an Eid celebration in our house. I have traveled back to Ranchi to be with my family.
Has the reaction of the people around you changed after earning Rs 1 crore on KBC 12?
Yes definitely, the reaction around me has changed, but I don’t have time to evaluate that, but I am completely overwhelmed with the kind of response I am getting. I receive phone calls from children to adults. It is a completely different feeling for me that I have never experienced.
Are you enjoying the celebrity treatment?
No. I’d rather have my feet on the ground and humbly accept the love and blessings I receive from people. I think it’s enough for me and I don’t need anything else. I don’t treat myself like a celebrity. I think God has been very kind and people very kind and that is how I feel at this moment.
Your mom’s dream was to see you at Kaun Banega Crorepati. It is true?
Yes, it was my mother’s dream, of course, and I grew up watching my mother live through many difficulties, but she never lost the courage to learn something new and move on in life. My sister and I get that strength from her. And we get the sensitivity to be kind and humble from our father. So I think we have a good mix of parents. I don’t think we would have been where we are today. My mother is absolutely the recognition force for all of us in terms of encouraging us to go there and make a mark. We have always seen her as a role model. It was not possible for us not to live up to his dreams. I think God has also been very kind, helping us where we are. When I got to the hot seat she was emotionally very overwhelmed and said it was the fulfillment of her dream and even if you don’t earn Rs 1 crore I will be equally happy. Just to see me with Mr. Bachchan on the bench.
How many years have you been trying to get to KBC?
KBC has been around for 12 seasons and 20 years and I was in college when I first tried it. Those were the days of landlines that would be dead between 15 and 20 days. Then we would go to the phone booths and try our luck. We would keep our fingers crossed hoping they would call us back and who knows if they would have called us back, but the phone would have been dead, people would not have been able to locate it. There were no emails or cell phones. Then I kept trying and trying but it never worked. It finally happened in 2020. Contrary to popular belief, 2020 has been quite lucky for me and I will never say that it has been a bad year.
What do you plan to do with the prize money?
I have not planned anything as of now as it is a lot of money and needs planning. I don’t want to waste it on an immediate reaction. As a family, we will sit down and think about it. But my two priorities are my two sets of parents and my son. We will invest some money in the medical needs of my elderly parents and in-laws. My son is an aspiring soccer player so I’ll make sure he gets a soccer coach for him and can fulfill his dreams. Other than that, a portion will definitely go to charity. That will need to be planned so that the right amount of money reaches the right kind of people. So, we will have to plan for that. As of now I am fully enjoying this joy and it is overwhelming for me right now. I think when everything calms down next week we will sit down and think about what we have to do.
Describe the time when you won and were going to play the Rs 1 crore question.
It is very difficult to describe the moment. But all I can remember is the feeling of sitting across from Mr. Bachchan and then crossing obstacle after obstacle was overwhelming. Once I crossed the Rs 50,00,000 I realized that even Rs 1 crore is possible. However, when I was answering all the questions, my focus was only on answering them all correctly. When it happened, you know how Mr. Bachchan creates suspense, so I freaked out a bit. We are used to seeing the Rs 1 crore milestone on TV and we tend to feel like it needs to be taken back. But when the very thing that you experience yourself, the music, the suspense, the celebration, comes on, you realize that it is exactly the same thing that you have seen on television. Once you sit in the hot seat you only get up after you have finished playing the game and there is no editing, drama and nothing staged. I was very nervous, but when I answered the question I was emotional and could not hold back the tears.
Do you regret not knowing the Rs 7 crore question?
No, I have no regrets that I was unable to answer the Rs 7 crore question. I think getting on the show and being able to express my opinion on the show was enough for me. Even if I hadn’t earned Rs 1 crore, I wouldn’t have regretted it. I had never been to the show to earn money. I went to the show for my mother and it was her dream. I am very proud to be able to do this for her. I’m happy that she got to meet Mr. Bachchan, of whom she is a huge fan. I think it was an impossible dream. I don’t think we would have had a chance to meet Amitabh Bachchan, sit in front of him, click on a picture. He told my mother how proud he was of me. Money can always pay off.
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