JOIN USCrorepati brushing up his English to prepare for new role
Host Amitabh Bachchan interrupted and said: “Count if you want, but it’s one crore. That’s for sure”. Big B was referring to the Rs 1 crore cheque handed over to Sushil, just before doling out the jackpot question worth Rs 5 crore.
Nearly two months after he created history on the small screen, this humble man from Motihari district in Bihar has stopped counting numbers (read: laurels). Instead of focussing on elementary arithmetic, Sushil is these days concentrating on brushing up the Nesfield’s grammar and learning the nuances of Queen’s language. “I decided to learn English at India International Centre in New Delhi, where a function was organised on November 14 to felicitate me.
It was a happy occasion where Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh honoured me. But at the same time, I felt lonely and isolated at the function because, barring me, everyone else was conversing in English. I felt small,” rued Sushil. “It was then and there that I decided that if one has to earn dignity, one should have a good knowledge of English,” added Sushil, who has recently been appointed the brand ambassador of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
To master the Queen’s English, Sushil has sought the assistance of his peers who are preparing for different competitive examinations. “I don’t have any inhibitions in asking anyone about something which I don’t know. At the same time, I can’t get myself enrolled in a coaching institute to learn spoken English. So, I have asked my neighbour Sachida Babu, a retired teacher, to help me learn the language,” said the man, who scripted a genuine rags-to-riches story in October 2011.
Fiscal aid
But then, ever since he won Rs 5 crore (out of which he received Rs 3.5 crore
after tax deduction) in KBC-5, Sushil has been bogged by requests for financial help from various quarters, including some who are totally unknown to him. Sample this: A seer visited his house at Hanumangarhi at Motihari in Champaran, and sought a heavy amount with a rider that the sum donated should not be made public. “You will get a huge bounty from the deity in return for the donation,” the seer told Sushil and also gave the account number in which the money should be deposited.
Yet another person from Bhilai, Arun Kumar has sought Rs 20 lakh from him as interest-free loan, which will be refunded as and when his (Arun) loan from the bank is sanctioned. In the third instance, one Umapati Ambastha of Agra has sought financial aid on the ground of being a senior citizen. In yet another strange request, Kalpana Gopal of Katni has urged Sushil to help her out with an assistance of Rs 20 lakh for the marriage of her daughters.
Sushil does not want to be rude to anyone or appear snobby, yet he has his own reasons to not entertain any such flimsy request. “Though there is scope for help in a genuine case, but I can’t go on solving everyone’s problem. In fact, the schools should teach children to be capable enough to help others, rather than approach people for help,” averred the crorepati, who, before becoming a celebrity, earned a meagre Rs 6,000 per month as a computer operator employed under MNREGS.
But that’s history.
As of now, he has been approached by Endemol India to enter ‘Bigg Boss’, but was advised by his wife, Seema, to stay away. “Yeh koi quiz show hai kya? Aap kya karenge wahan jaa kar? (Is it (Bigg Boss) a quiz show? What will you do there?), she told Sushil and then hastened to add, “He is too seedha-saadha (gullible) to enter ‘Big Boss’ house.” In fact, Sushil had rarely watched episodes of Big Boss. But when the offer actually came, he sat down to have a close look.
“Terrible,” he exclaimed, “I will be kicked out in a day.” “He is such a simpleton… he does not know the daav-pench (manipulations) required to be in the Bigg Boss. Rather, I would have performed better had they invited me,” said Seema, who told Sushil in clear terms that the offer, no matter how lucrative, was not good as he does not fit the bill.
The simple guy could not disagree with his better-half. “Bigg Boss is a great show but it’s not for me. My middle class values won’t allow me to do something which I would regret later. Besides, I have MNREGS campaign to look forward through which I want to inspire the GenNext,” he said before signing off.