Mumbai's Zinia Chatterjee wins Wakefit's fifth sleep internship, takes home Rs 9.6 lakh

Zinia Chatterjee, who lives in Mumbai, has won Wakefit's fifth Sleep Internship. She received Rs 9.6 lakh and a holiday sponsored by the company. The contest ran for about 60 days.

Internships usually let young people learn the ropes at a company and earn a stipend. This one was different. Participants had to improve the quality of their sleep, go to bed at a fixed time and get full rest. Over the 60 days, every participant's sleep was tracked and scored on performance.

More than two lakh people from across the country applied. After a screening, only 10 participants were selected, and Chatterjee came first among them.

At the end of the 60 days, Manikandan, Zinia Chatterjee and Mehak Khot of Ratnagiri were in the top three. Karim Khan of Hyderabad got a wild card entry, so four participants reached the final.

The final began with the "Memory Foam Challenge", in which participants had to look at a photograph and recreate the bedroom exactly. This was followed by the "Sleep Auction", in which they bid for items such as pillows, blankets, air conditioners, lighting and sound systems. Finally, everyone's sleep scores were added up and Chatterjee was declared the winner.

The internship was not only about resting in bed. Participants also had to take on creative tasks every week. In a task called "Sleep Cinema", they had to recreate scenes from famous films connected to sleep. In "Sleep Bingo", participants' sleep habits were tested.

In the "Undercover Sleep Mission", participants had to say words such as "blanket" or "pillow" 10 times in ordinary conversation without anyone getting suspicious. The best performer each week was given the title "Pro Sleeper of the Week".

Wakefit started the unusual sleep internship in 2019. According to the company, the first four seasons drew more than 10 lakh applications, and 65 interns were given a stipend of Rs 1,00,000. The winner of the fifth season has now received Rs 9.6 lakh.

The company has also opened pre-registration for the sixth season. It said the aim of the initiative is to make people understand the importance of good sleep and encourage them to adopt a healthy lifestyle.