A young garland seller at the Mahakumbh Mela venue in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj, who became a viral sensation on social media, is making headlines because of the troubles that came with fame. Moni Bhosle's beauty, charm and glittering eyes won millions of hearts after videos of her selling Rudraksh malas in Prayagraj went viral.
Social media users compared the 16-year-old girl's looks to those of the timeless icon, the Mona Lisa, and the teenager was nicknamed 'Mona Lisa'.
However, ‘Mona Lisa’ was forced to return to Madhya Pradesh's Indore, her home town, after the sudden fame hampered her ability to earn a living.
Social media users nicknamed Moni ‘brown beauty’ due to the teenager's striking amber eyes, sharp nose and dusky complexion. The girl has drawn widespread admiration which has adversely impacted her ability to earn a living. Rather than purchasing garlands, crowds and social media influencers flock to her stall only to click selfies and videos.
A viral video shows one such instance of the nuisance that was created when large crowds gathered at her stall to take photos and videos of her. The disruption and distress that the fame brought prompted Moni's father to take the difficult step. He decided to send her back to the home city. According to her father, the mela was no longer a viable place for her well-being or livelihood.
The video shows Mona's family protecting her from the unwanted attention as a crowd gathers around her stall, while she covers her face with a scarf. The video garnered over 5.3 lakh likes, 2.33 crore views and several comments.
Addressing the issue, General Secretary and INC Karnataka spokesperson Lavanya Ballal Jain in a post on X (formerly Twitter) wrote: 'How disgusting are Indian men? A poor family from Madhya Pradesh goes to the Kumbh to sell garlands for a living, but the sinners who went to wash away their sins became so fascinated that now the family is seen removing the crowd and focusing on income instead of focusing on livelihood.'
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