Mumbai: Earning lakhs of rupees just by sleeping sounds like an impossible dream, but a woman from Mumbai has turned this into a reality. Jiniya Chatterjee recently won a whopping Rs 9.6 lakh after successfully completing a 60-day “sleep internship,” an initiative designed to promote healthy sleeping habits.
According to a recent report by ABP Live, Chatterjee secured the first position in the fifth season of Wakefit’s unique Sleep Internship program. Her achievement is particularly impressive given the massive scale of the competition, which saw over 2 lakh applications from across the country. After rigorous screening, only 10 candidates were selected to participate in the two-month-long challenge.
Unlike traditional corporate internships that involve daily office tasks and a standard stipend, this program required participants to focus on improving their sleep quality, maintaining a consistent bedtime, and getting adequate rest. Throughout the 60-day period, the sleep patterns of all interns were closely tracked to generate performance scores.
However, the internship was not just about lying in bed. Participants had to engage in weekly creative activities to prove their dedication. These included the ‘Sleep Cinema’ challenge, where they recreated famous movie scenes with a sleep-related twist, and an ‘Undercover Sleep Mission’ that required them to organically use words like ‘blanket’ or ‘pillow’ 10 times during normal conversations without arousing suspicion.
The grand finale featured a tough competition among the top four finalists: Manikandan from Ratnagiri, Mehek Khot, wild-card entry Karim Khan from Hyderabad, and Chatterjee. The final round included a ‘Memory Foam Challenge’ where they had to replicate a bedroom setup from a photograph, followed by a ‘Sleep Auction’ to bid for optimal sleeping conditions like pillows, blankets, AC, lighting, and room sound.
After evaluating the final sleep scores and task performances, Jiniya Chatterjee emerged as the ultimate ‘Sleep Champion.’ Alongside the substantial cash prize of Rs 9.6 lakh, she was also awarded a company-sponsored vacation.
Wakefit launched this innovative campaign in 2019 to raise awareness about the importance of good sleep. Across its first four seasons, the program attracted over 10 lakh applicants and awarded Rs 1 lakh stipends to 65 interns. The company has already opened pre-registrations for the upcoming sixth season.