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A Year Later, Little Change for Real-Life Slumdog Millionaire

Sushil Kumar still wearing same clothes, living with family

By Mark Russell,  Newser Staff

Posted Nov 1, 2012 11:02 AM CDT

(Newser) – In October 2011, Sushil Kumar, a poor government clerk, became a real-life Slumdog Millionaire when he won $1 million on the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Today, not much has changed for Kumar—he bought a generator and a scooter, and he quit his $100 per month job. But he still wears the same clothes he did before winning and lives in a small house with his 11-person extended family, reports the BBC.

"I'm spending my money carefully," says Kumar, who says he has spent about $200,000 of his winnings so far. The biggest chunk has gone for a piece of land where a nine-bedroom house is now being built for Kumar and his family, each bedroom with its own bathroom. As an instant celebrity, Kumar says he was flooded by requests for money, but he's turned them all down. "A million is a lot of money but not enough if you start helping people, you'll lose it all in a day."

Sushil Kumar, left, with Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan, shows $1 million check after winning on an Indian game show, in Mumbai, India, on Oct. 25, 2011.
Sushil Kumar, left, with Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan, shows $1 million check after winning on an Indian game show, in Mumbai, India, on Oct. 25, 2011.   (AP Photo)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 8 comments
793tango
Nov 1, 2012 8:22 PM CDT
I always said if I won a big chunk of money like that I'd set aside 1/3rd to give to charity.1/3rd to long term investmentsand living expenses and 1/3rd to current expenses and to just have fun with.
WinglessExtremist
Nov 1, 2012 3:39 PM CDT
Poor guy.
carbonated_turtle
Nov 1, 2012 12:33 PM CDT
He doesn't have to work anymore, and he's having a 9 bedroom, 9+ bathroom house built. It sounds to me like he's doing just fine.
 

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