Arijit Singh is certainly one of the biggest names of the Indian music industry but before he tasted success in singing, his journey looked very different from that of Abhijeet Sawant. Both the singers entered the reality show circuit in 2005 but their careers moved in different directions after their respective shows.
Abhijeet became a household name after winning the first season of Indian Idol. Arijit, meanwhile, participated in Fame Gurukul but remained away from the spotlight for several years.
Speaking to a film portal recently, Abhijeet Sawant recalled how Arijit Singh spent much of that period working behind the scenes in music studios. According to Abhijeet, for around 10 years after 2005, Arijit worked with several leading music composers, not primarily as a singer but as a producer and programmer.
Abhijeet Sawant said that Arijit Singh essentially went back to the basics and rebuilt his career from the ground up, while very few people knew about him during those years.
He also recalled that their popularity levels were very different at the time. Abhijeet said he was far more popular than Arijit following their reality-show appearances, which meant the kind of pressure he experienced was different from what Arijit faced.
Arijit Singh continued working with musicians for years before getting his major breakthrough. Although he had earlier sung ‘Dil Sambhal Ja Zara’ from Murder 2, it was ‘Tum Hi Ho’ from Aashiqui 2 that transformed his career and established him as Arijit Singh. Abhijeet Sawant described the success of the song as a matter of destiny.
The Indian Idol 1 winner also reflected on how audiences often judge artists based on how successful or visible they are. He said people tend to praise those who achieve success while finding faults with artists whose journeys are less visible.
Abhijeet Sawant stressed that every artist has a different journey. He pointed out that people are working hard in their own way to build their careers and lives, and their efforts should be respected rather than judged only by their level of success.
In the end, Abhijeet Sawant’s reflections serve as a reminder that success does not follow the same timeline for every artist, and every journey has its own share of struggles, setbacks and breakthroughs.
