The Secret Millionaire: Charan Gill
Last year Charan Gill, the curry-house king of Scotland, sold his restaurant empire for £16 million pounds. He became one of the richest men in the country overnight. Now, he lives with his wife and family in his dream home. But Charan’s not always been used to having money. He moved to Glasgow from India when he was 9 years old and started out working in the shipyards at the age of 15. He spent the next 25 years learning about business and by the time he was in his 40s he owned 17 Indian restaurants. Today, Charan feels he wants to help others who haven’t been as fortunate as himself. “I’ve worked hard, but I know that there are a lot of people who have worked harder than me who are still on the poverty line. I hope I can do some good. I would like to think there’s more to me than just curry.”
This week, the 51-year-old Sikh becomes the third Secret Millionaire to go under cover and try to find people that he believes are worthy recipients for some of his fortune. He travels to Thetford, Norfolk, to join the thousands of unskilled workers who survive in rural Britain on the minimum wage. For the next ten days, he’s agreed to leave his millionaire lifestyle and start again with only £10 pounds in his pocket. As far as the locals are concerned he’s taking part in a documentary about people moving to the area hoping to start a new life. Unemployment levels in Thetford are low, but with most people working for the minimum wage, poverty levels are high, so it’s not going to be easy.
During his stay, Charan has to fend for himself. He lives in a small rented flat on a housing estate costing £60 per week, so he has to make money fast and after a visit to the local job centre he lands his first day’s work as a fruit packer in a factory earning £5.25 per hour. He moves from job to job daily and soon discovers more about what life is like for the low wage earners of Thetford. At the end of his first week, and 48 hours of hard labour, his pay check amounts to just over £200. It’s certainly not a fortune, but he has met some interesting people, like Morgan who spends his time working as a labourer so that he can spend the weekends sleeping on the floor of his one-bedroomed flat while his 3 children are visiting him. “Unfortunately the world is full of Morgans. If I was inclined to help people like that I would be just walking down the street and dishing out money because of the needs that they have. Everyone has those needs.”
Just how will Charan decide on who to give his cash to in a community where he feels so many people are in need? And when the proud Indian Scot finds himself working amongst the local immigrant population how will he react?
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I was actually moved and in tears.How peoples lives can be changed with no time, we are so many out there that need a dream come true. Could someone tell me the secret of becoming successful in business i work so hard tried everything but cant seem to move foward need help badly.
There are no formulas to success and what works for one person does not neccessarily work for someone else. If there were formulas to follow we would all achieve success.The difference between success and failure is often small and therefore, it can be demotivating. The secret is that we must never falter and lose sight of the goal.There are no shortcuts and success comes at a price. Sacrifices have to be made and one has to be prepared to work 24/7. The main ingredient has to be self belief because along the way, things will happen which will make you doubt yor ability, you must keep the faith. Persevere and try try again, there is no other way. Surround yourself with people who think positive and never keep the company of pessimists….pessimism rubs of and will wear you out. Dont believe them when they tell you that the big car and the house on top of the hill are for someone else, they are not, we can all have one..I know.
Charan Gill
Hi Mr. Gill
I happened to see your show recently and was most inspired and moved by your kindness. I have myself only recently moved here, am a doctor and hopefully one day will reach the pinnacle of success through my medicine and writing and be able to help others as you have.
If there is anything else that this humble doctor can help you with in the meantime please let me know.
Kindest regards,
Shobhit
Shobhit
Good luck to you. I am sure you are already doing great things without realising.
Charan
Dear Mr Gill,
My wife and I have just watched The Secret Millionaire and were uplifted by your kindness to others. If only there were more people like you in the world, it wojuld be a much nicer place. Although we have no money to spare, we always try to do our best to help others, and it is nice to see someone as successful as yourself doing it also. We believe that anyone can make a difference in someone elses life, if they are just prepared to put themselves out a bit. We have no great dreams of great success, we just hope we are always able to help where we can and be nice to others. Thank you for your inspiration. We wish you all the best in your future endeavours, and best wishes to you and your family.
Jason & Sara Black
I Met Mr Gill at one of the places he worked and he was a very genuine nice person. It wa snice to see he helped the community locally and it was also nice to see the response he got.
there are many things that could have been covered and many more organisations that could benefit from the intervention of an individual such as Mr Gill, it would be nice to think that RDF media (Channel 4) had only the good of the community at heart, sadly it made good television and obviously made some one a healthy profit perhaps some of that profit could have gone towards local community projects perhaps even a little further afeild than Thetford.
I found the programme to be rather shallow, having commented about social issues in and around the Thetford area I feel that RDF Media (channel 4) seemed to gloss over the real social issues that prevail in the local area. The programme seemed to be biased towards people who for one reason or another have failed, or are not well motivated, the true failure was that of channel 4 to not recognise the real plight of the region. Also by seeking to help individuals rather than groups Mr Gill and channel 4 have bred a certain ammount of distaste within the community, and possibly inadvertantly stired some old rivalries that had queled over the past few years since euro 2004.
In future people of the area would like some consultation before the wool is pulled over their eyes by a large media company with a large audience who may be influenced and pass judgement on the area.
Leave us alone!!!!!!
[...] A cafe that was given £15,000 by millionaire Charan Gill as part of Channel 4’s Secret Millionaire programme, was closed down last month due to its failure to pay its bills. [...]
Hallo,
i seen your show too in my dreams i really hope samone will nock on my door and help me too.Haw to exsplain,am from latvia and my family.i got two kids and i really don’t know haw to survive in this contry.Like,i had recived child tax credits for two years years and one lovely day thay stopped to pay me.I do not get consil tax benifit natting,but by eropes law i got to recive helpe.I been fillded out meany forms and they just ignoring me.I don’t now wot to do we ouwe to landlord a lot money and in eney day we got to move out ,but wear?We hawe natting,no money lots of bills.Haw do we get so fare,my husband was a bus driver and cort tuck his license off for first time speeding.And thean he coldent find a job,he applied to eweriting ewen for clener and factorys but ,looks like if you not polish it will be diffucult to get eny job at all.And after nine months finelly he has a job for 5.50 as security officer.But,we cen’t afforde to pay all bills and we hawe no onw why wold helpe.I am craying my wasingmashine brouke down,we need now one but haw cen we by?So,its means we will take from mony we got to pay a landlord it is so unfaire.If somene will hawe in heard to helpe ,we wold be really happy,please ,help us!Samtimes you don’t need to go to africa to find somone in need.I cen’t give my children natting and for this i hate my self,please read this.
I was so moved by tonights secret millionaire, it was warming.
if there is a millionaire out there wanting to help someone my son who is 27 has really bad teeth and to have them all done propely would cost a small fortune his only way out would be for him to have them all out and at 27 years old that is very sad so if you can make a dream come true please do
I do not need millions to be happy. I am doing good and believe will be doing even better – just the matter of time, patience and hard work.
I would do everything to get my sisters out of the racist and getting fashist’s Russia.
But if I had a million or actually much less
Dear Mr Gill
I saw you on TV in Norway..
Norwegian are asking me if your are in my family. sins we have the same surname. i sayed no but i wish to know you.
Norwagian are very pleased for what you are doing.
and you are very good man helping all this peupels.
Im also Punjabi came to norway in 1976 with my father.. we are from Chabbewal, dist, hoshiarpur. I wish to meet you some day..
Im building up my beer brand Chakra Beer. maybee you can help me to find one distributor in england and scotland.
i wish you all the best and good life..
and one day we will meet.
Garisober Singh Gill Norway
Dear Charan, I need financial help to fulfill a promise, I made to my grandmother 10, years ago. Unfortunately, she has now passed away but I am committed to seeing my promise come to fruition. If you think that you can help in any way, please contact me.
Regards,
Mr Powell
Daer Mister Charan I watch your programme on television thats increadable. I have the greatest respect for you as a person.I am speachless.Graetings.Marino
Namastee, I am Gaitri from Belgium, I watched your programme on flemish television ” vitiya” on 13/11/2008 , I could not hold my tears on my eyes. It was really great job. great job , “Paropakar punnyaam , papayan parpidanam,” I inspired with the word that you said to the portugees man “you dont return back to me but you can help anybody that he needs” god will always bless you.
gaitri
Oostende
Belgium
We are really interested in contacting Charan, with a view to inviting him as our guest speaker to our rotay club. Can this be arranged?
carol
Hi Mr Gill
I am from Sydney – Australia. I watch you episode last night on Channal Nine. I am migrated from Punjab as well and it is inspiring to see other punjabi’s successful story. only we pardesi can feel that how difficult it is to leave the country and settle in another county.
Regards
Ravi
Charan
You are a lovely man. Why wasn’t a Scottish town chosen for the show? There are plenty of needy, good, deserving, Scots who could have benefited from your money. These Scots made you the millionaire you are today!
All of the other shows that I have seen have been done in England. What’s wrong with the Scots?
We all love the show, regards Jean Australia (ex-pat Scot)
It was great to see you on tv last week. I live in Australia now so was very surprised to see this. Hope you are well.
best wishes
Selina