Marathi singer Sanju Rathod, known for his viral songs Shaky Shaky and Gulabi Sadi, recently opened up about his struggling days. He recalled being tortured and abused after he took loans. Sanju, in one of his interviews, said he slept on railway station for 15 days after coming to Mumbai without any money.
Sanju hails from Dhanwad, a small village in Maharashtra's Jalgaon. He gained popularity a couple of years back because of his Marathi pop hits. His latest track Shaky has become his fourth song to cross 100 million views on YouTube. The song has also claimed the No 1 spot on YouTube's Top 100 Music Videos Global chart this week, surpassing international heavyweights like Rose and Bruno Mars' APT and Ed Sheeran's Sapphire.
"I was in debt. I came to Mumbai without any money. I slept at CSMT station for 15 days with only one blanket. I lost my phone and I was without a phone for nearly 5 to 6 months," he said, during an interview with Zoom.
Opening up about taking loans for making songs, he said, "Initially, I used to do songs for Ganpati Bappa every year. My songs would get 10-15 million views even back then when YouTube wasn't as popular. I didn't know much about YouTube, and I didn't have an account. I used to take loans from friends and family to make videos. My videos would go viral, and people would say, 'Look, he's making so much money.' But the truth is, I was struggling."
"People would stand outside my house and abuse me. I'd hide on the terrace, behind the water tank, and literally jump down to escape. There are many stories like that. But now, it's all forgiven," Sanju added.
Sanju gained fame with Gulabi Sadi, released February, 2024, which he wrote and composed. The music video features Prajakta Ghag. His 2025 single Shaky Shaky, featuring actress Isha Malviya, is a fusion of Marathi folk, indie pop, and Afrobeat, written, composed, and performed by him with production by G-Spark.
Some of his other popular tracks include Kali Bindi, Nauvari, Bulletwali, and Bappa Wala Gana series.
