

You might remember the 2008 Oscar-Winning film Slumdog Millionaire. It was set in India. Well, last year, India had a real Slumdog Millionaire. 28-year-old Sushil Kumar won a million dollars on India’s version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
Kumar: (via translator) Overnight, I became known across India. And many of my problems were automatically solved. I feel it’s miraculous. I never wanted to become a millionaire. God made me one.
So, a year since his big win, how are Kumar and his family doing?
Kumar lives in the small town of Motihari in the north-eastern state of Bihar. Kumar was a government worker. He was making about $100 a month before he became a millionaire. But the only two luxury items Kumar has 1)splurged on so far: a small tablet computer, and a power generator. Power outages are pretty frequent in town, so he wanted to make sure his family would get a continuous supply of electricity. You see, Kumar is still living in the same four-room house he shares with 10 other family members.
But that’s about to change, too. He’s bought land next door. He’s building a big house for him and his wife, his parents, and his brothers and their families. Kumar’s dad is still stunned that he can afford to get a gallon of milk at a time, and buy expensive vegetables.
Sushil Kumar has paid off his debts, and saved the rest. He says he wants to spend his money wisely.
Kumar: (via translator) After I won, I started getting letters asking for money to pay for people’s operations, land, their children’s weddings. But in our society, if you help one person, thousands start coming. We only helped people we were close to. A million is a lot, but if you help everyone, you’ll lose it all in one day.
By the way, that big house across the street, it’s gonna come in especially handy now. The family is expanding. Kumar’s wife Seema—who he married not long before he won the million dollars—is going to have a baby.
你可能還記得2008年的奧斯卡獲獎電影《貧民窟里的百萬富翁》吧,電影講述的故事發生在印度。嗯,去年,印度還真的出了一位貧民窟里的百萬富翁。28歲的蘇希爾·庫馬爾在印度版《誰想成為百萬富翁》的電視節目中贏得了一百萬美元。
庫馬爾:(通過翻譯)一夜之間,我在整個印度都出名了。我的許多問題也都迎刃而解。我覺得這是一個奇跡,我從來沒有想過成為一名百萬富翁,是上帝讓我成了百萬富翁。
那么,在他贏得巨額獎金的一年之后,庫馬爾和他的家人近況如何?
庫馬爾的家在印度東北比哈爾邦一個叫莫提哈里的小鎮上。他是一名政府工作人員,在成為百萬富翁之前每月的收入大約一百美元。但他贏得巨獎之后,只買了兩件奢侈品:一臺小平板電腦和一臺發電機。鎮上經常會停電,所以他希望確保家人的用電不會間斷。要知道,庫馬爾如今還與其他十位家人一起住在原來的地方,一所有四個房間的房子。
但這一點即將發生變化。他買了鄰近的一塊地。他打算給自己和妻子、父母,以及兄弟們的家庭建一所大房子。如今,他們家一次可以買得起一加侖的牛奶(約4.55升),買得起昂貴的蔬菜。對此,庫馬爾的父親還是覺得很不可思議。
蘇希爾·庫馬爾還清了自己的債務,把剩下的錢存起來。他表示,他要理智地花錢。
庫馬爾:(通過翻譯)在贏得獎金之后,我收到不少信,向我要錢支付他們的手術費用、給他們買地、為他們的孩子支付婚禮的費用等。……