A dad who faced bankruptcy in his youth has revealed how he overcame financial turmoil and bought a £1.7M property after discovering a lucrative talent for voiceovers in his forties.
Amrit Sandhu, 46, from Ealing, west London, was left feeling desperate in late 2019, as he struggled to make ends meet, splitting his time between his family’s ailing property business and odd jobs, when a voice over actor friend suggested he followed in his footsteps.
Investing in a cheap microphone, he sat in an empty bedroom and made his first recording for an online business presentation in India, earning £15.
From there business boomed – with him now making at least £8,000 a month, without leaving home.
Amrit, who lives with his HR business partner wife Arrinder, 44, and their sons Taran, 19, and Karam, 16, said: ‘We’ve had it so hard in the past and things are now finally turning around for me and my family.
Amrit Sandhu, 46, from Ealing, west London, was left feeling desperate in late 2019, as he struggled to make ends meet, splitting his time between his family’s ailing property business and odd jobs, when a voice over actor friend suggested he followed in his footsteps. Investing in a cheap microphone, he sat in an empty bedroom and made his first recording for an online business presentation in India, earning £15
Amrit bought his dream house for £1.7m in 2021 in Ealing, west London where he lives with his wife and two sons
‘I feel so privileged every time I get in the recording booth.’
Setting out on his new venture by joining Fiverr, an online marketplace for freelance serves, in his first month, Amrit made £400.
But he has now met more than 2,000 orders for customers ranging from Nokia to Qatar Airways – even earning £4,000 in a day for an e-learning video for a world leading car manufacturer.
Amrit, who has now hired two assistants to help him, said: ‘I even built myself a recording studio in the garden.
‘I think something magical happens when you make a commitment.
‘I think of myself as a voice actor now, which is incredible.’
Working on everything from TV ads to introducing Ed Sheeran’s latest album on Spotify, while Amrit modestly predicts his income as £100k a year, he has earned a staggering £150,000 in the last 18 months for commissions including a Christmas ad as Santa, which aired on BT Sport.
He said: ‘This new career has been life changing.’
Amrit, who lives with his HR business partner wife Arrinder, 44, and their sons Taran, 19, and Karam, 16, said: ‘We’ve had it so hard in the past and things are now finally turning around for me and my family.
And his newfound wealth enabled him to move his family from a west London house with rooms so small he says he could not stretch his arms out without touching the walls, to a stunning five-bedroom £1.7 million home in Ealing in July 2021.
He also bought a dream sportscar – a Porsche 718 Cayman – for £46,000 in February 2022.
Describing his staggering pay rise, he said: ‘The most surreal feeling was every single month I was making money and I was wondering if I’d make that money ever again.
‘It’s just such a blessing.
‘I got the house I dreamed of. I got the car I dreamed of. It’s been incredible.
‘I will be able to give my family and my children a better life.
‘And to be able to do all of this from a room at my house, so I can still spend time with children and be really present as a father, is just amazing.’
One of Amrit’s proudest moments was seeing his son’s excitement when he heard his dad’s voice announcing Ed Sheeran’s new album on Spotify.
Amrit said: ‘I was on Spotify the other day promoting Ed Sheeran’s new album. My son Taran listens to Ed so much, he’s the biggest fan, so for both of us it was a pretty surreal experience.’
Raised in Shepherd’s Bush, then a tough west London neighbourhood that has since been gentrified, Amrit’s life was once very different.
He started to work at his parents’ sweet shop when he was just five, although his dream was to one day appear on BBC’s Blue Peter.
Drawn to showbusiness, even as a child he started cultivating his love for learning new accents, as he grew up in a diverse area, where everything from Cockney to Irish and Jamaican voices were common.
He said: ‘Being surrounded by all these rich voices. I started playing games. I’d mimic the voices I heard, so I picked up all the accents.’
But his dreams were usurped by harsh realities when tough times saw his family moving in with relatives in the late 90s.
Setting out on his new venture by joining Fiverr, an online marketplace for freelance serves, in his first month, Amrit made £400. But he has now met more than 2,000 orders for customers ranging from Nokia to Qatar Airways – even earning £4,000 in a day for an e-learning video for a world leading car manufacturer. He was able to buy his dream car (pictured)
Amrit with his wife Arrinder. His newfound wealth enabled him to move his family from a west London house with rooms so small he says he could not stretch his arms out without touching the walls, to a stunning five-bedroom £1.7 million home in Ealing in July 2021.
Raised in Shepherd’s Bush, then a tough west London neighbourhood that has since been gentrified, Amrit’s life was once very different. Pictured left and right as a child
He said: ‘We had to move in with our cousins.
‘And we only had a holiday every five years.’
As soon as Amrit turned 16, he started to juggle multiple jobs in order to help pay the bills.
Eventually, he quit his job in IT in order to help his family’s struggling business.
He said: ‘I was juggling a few jobs. I tried to find creative outlets, to keep my spirits up, but I also needed to make money and pay my bills – although nothing was working.’
Amrit is clearly no lightweight, as he was nominated for four awards at the One Voice Conference, the Oscars of the voice acting world, last year.
He also bought a dream sportscar – a Porsche 718 Cayman – for £46,000 in February 2022
Amrit’s eureka moment came in late 2019, when his voice over actor friend suggested he joined Fiverr to see if he could make a bit of money on the side doing the same thing.
And he says his first sale rekindled the creative passion which had driven him as a boy.
He explained: ‘As an adult, I became scared of dreaming, as nothing seemed to work out.
‘I’d been made redundant twice by the time I was 26, but now I feel like I’m in control of my future.
‘I love playing all these characters. It’s something I feel passionate about and I feel so privileged to be able to do it.
‘Doing this as my job, without any training, is completely insane to me.
Offering advice to others who want to chase a dream, Amrit said people should find something they love so much they would do it for free. He is pictured in the late 1990s
‘Every day is so interesting, as I get to do all these different voices. One day I’m Gandalf, another day I’m David Attenborough.
‘I even have a wizard hat which gets me into character. I absolutely love this field, you get paid to have fun.’
And Amrit is clearly no lightweight, as he was nominated for four awards at the One Voice Conference, the Oscars of the voice acting world, last year.
Although he did not win, he was amazed to be in the same room as some of the world’s most talented actors.
He said: ‘I was surrounded by people with such iconic voices like X Factor’s Peter Dixon.
‘I only started doing this at 44. It was amazing to even be in that room.
‘Fiverr was my way into this industry. The platform is just brilliant.’
Offering advice to others who want to chase a dream, Amrit said people should find something they love so much they would do it for free.
He said: ‘Whatever you do, follow your highest excitement. Find a way to make money from that.’