Talaash! Which part of Mumbai do you want to see?

Andheri West





'You can't live in Reality Television, you have to live in reality', says Abhishek Kumar, seen here with his new car outside his rented apartment in Andheri West.

This boy from Dhanbad took a break from his demanding Engineering course to try his luck in Indian Idol. He came eighth in that season but it also brought him instant fame, a contract with a music company to be part of a boy band that released an album that flopped and a string of live shows that continue to pay off to this day.

However, after wearing out his shoes, making the rounds of Bollywood music directors with a CD of his songs, he went back to complete his engineering course and is now working for a leading software company. But music shows (along with his competitor-turned-friends from Indian Idol) continue to pay for the frills in his life.

For a more in depth article on the reality show, check out Tehelka Magazine's latest issue. Gaurav Jain travels across India to dig deep into the life of youngsters like Abhishek Kumar.




Online version of the story here. For the full story, pick up a copy from your nearest newsstand.


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