| MY BUDGET: Abhijeet Sawant, Indian Idol |
| Team BS / Mumbai March 1, 2006 |
| What did you think of the Budget? |
| It's good. I am glad excise duty on cigarettes has been increased. |
| How will it impact you professionally? |
| The exemption of excise duty on floppy discs will be beneficial in our recordings. |
| How will your industry respond? |
| Artists will increase their fees since event management has been brought under the service tax net. |
| And on a personal level? |
| (Laughs) I'll splurge on shoes since excise duty on footwear has been reduced to 8 per cent. I will be careful with ATMs since they have been cast under the service tax net. I bought a car recently; I should have waited since duty on small cars has been reduced to 16 per cent. |
| Will your parents be happy with the Budget? |
| My mother will be happy since there has been no increase on domestic LPG. My parents will be glad that no new taxes have been introduced. |
| Abhijeet Sawant, Indian Idol |