Background and career
Abhijeet Sawant (born 7 October 1981) is an Indian singer, television personality, and the winner of first season of Indian Idol. He was the first runner up of Jo Jeeta Wohi Super Star and finished third in Asian Idol. He was also the first runner up of Bigg Boss Marathi 5.
Abhijeet Sawant the first Indian Idol was born on October 7, 1981 in a middle class Marathi speaking family, he studied in Mumbai’s Raje Shivaji Vidyalay in Mahim before completing his graduation from Chetna College, Bandra. Abhijeet has revealed that he was not a good student academically, but developed interest in singing and it was his uncle, a professional artist who guided him in finding his career path. While working on his music career, he studied sound engineering, and IT at University of Mumbai. After graduating from Chetana College of Commerce & Economics, Sawant joined the music industry.
Abhijeet Sawant won the 1st season of Indian Idol, an adaptation of the Pop Idol format, in 2004. His first solo album, Aapka Abhijeet Sawant, was released on 14 April 2005. That year he also did playback singing in the movie Aashiq Banaya Aapne, performing the song Mar Jaawan Mit Jaawan. His second album, Junoon, was released on 10 July 2007. The title track charted in India. Abhijeet Sawant was a finalist of Clinic All Clear Jo Jeeta Wohi Superstar on Star Plus in 2008. The show was a competition between the winners and runners-up of various singing reality shows on Indian television. Sawant became the first runner up of the show. He released his third studio album in 2013 which was titled Farida.
Sawant made his acting debut in the movie Lottery in 2009. He also made a small appearance at the end of film Tees Maar Khan. He made a special appearance as himself in the romantic drama series Kaisa Ye Pyar Hai and thriller crime series C.I.D.
Sawant and his wife Shilpa participated in the dancing reality show Nach Baliye (Season 4) in (2008–2009). They were eliminated after facing public votes. He co-hosted Indian Idol 5 along with Hussain Kuwajerwala. He has joined the Shiv Sena with a mandate to attract youth to the party fold. In 2024, he competed and finished as the runner-up of Bigg Boss Marathi Season 5. In 2025, he competed on Celebrity MasterChef India where he was the second person to be eliminated.
In 2010, Sawant and his friend Prajakta Shukre (with three other aspiring singers) were driving their individual cars in Santa Cruz (Mumbai), returning from a singers' meet. Shukre's car rammed into a scooter injuring two people. As public gathered, Sawant came out to help his friend. But an angry mob beat him. Later, police arrived rescuing them from mob.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
