The winner of the first season of Indian Idol, singer Abhijeet Sawant feels thankful for all the love he got back then in 2004. Though he got a dream start, his 15-year-long journey in the showbiz hasn’t been without struggles and roadblocks.

Recalling his reality show days, he shares, “I lacked guidance and had no idea how to go about it. It was overwhelming. It was a completely new experience for me, which was scary too.”

Sawant, 40, says that back then, the idea of reality shows was so new “that even the ones making it didn’t know what was what”. “There wasn’t much positivity in the industry for new artistes, though the audience was cheering for you. There was no welcoming attitude for new kids,” he reveals.

He admits after winning the show he did ‘feel like a legend’. “You can’t take that lightly. It has been written down in history. When my first album released, I was so excited but a musician told me, that ‘Your song is quite regular. It should have been rock or distortion’. I think somewhere there is illiteracy in our audience regarding music which is why we haven’t been able to push the music industry to greater heights. But if I look at my career, I feel I’ve achieved a lot. To be relevant in this industry for 15 years is a big deal,” says the singer, whose first solo album, Aap Kaa Abhijeet Sawant, released in 2005, followed by albums Junoon (2007), Farida (2013) and Fakira (2018). He also did playback singing in films such as Aashiq Banaya Aapne (2005) and Dishoom (2016).

So, how has been his journey after the show? “There was a different kind of struggle... Somewhere, my work wasn’t taken seriously. Music composers thought I had already achieved stardom and that I didn’t need any more songs. Often we love underdogs and support them. But when they reach the top, then we feel insecure,” he shares, adding that he always dreamt of being a pop singer, but things didn’t go as planned.

“Had I got the right guidance I’d have reached greater heights in my career. In 2008, the pop industry had sort of diminished. Indie songs ka daur khatam ho gaya tha... If the pop industry was thriving back then, as it is now, maybe it’d have been possible to do more,” he says.

Sawant’s advice to reality show aspirants is that every individual has their own journey. After a competition, there are many highs and lows, “irrespective of your win or not, you have to keep moving on and doing more. Learn from the bad experiences and cherish the good ones. Today’s children can shape their journey their way due to the exposure on social media and on channels like YouTube. They can create their own identity and also pursue their passion,” he concludes.