Actress Mamta Kulkarni to be consecrated as Hindu nun under Kinnar Akhara; adopts new name

 Actor Mamta Kulkarni on Friday renounced the worldly life at the Maha Kumbh and will be consecrated as a Hindu nun under the Kinnar Akhara, seers said.

Kulkarni, 52, took 'sanyas' under the Kinnar Akhara by performing her own 'Pind Daan' and will be consecrated as 'mahamandaleshwar', they said.

The Kinnar Akhara was established by eunuchs and it functions under the Juna Akhara. While an akhara is a Hindu religious order, Pind Daan is a ritual performed to pay homage to the departed ancestors.

Kulkarni took a dip in the holy waters of the Sangam.

Kinnar Akhara's Mahamandaleshwar Kaushalya Nand Giri alias Tina Maa told PTI that Kulkarni performed her own Pind Daan on the banks of River Ganga on Friday and she will be later consecrated as a mahamandaleshwar.

Kinnar Akhara's Acharya Mahamandaleshwar Laxmi Narayan Tripathi will impart 'deeksha' (initiation) to Kulkarni.

“Kinnar Akhada is going to make Mamta Kulkarni (former Bollywood actress) a Mahamandleshwar. She has been named as Shri Yamai Mamta Nandgiri. As I am talking here, all the rituals are underway,” Acharya Mahamandleshwar of Kinnar Akhada Laxmi Narayan said.

"She has been in touch with Kinnar Akhada and me for the last one and a half years... She is allowed to perform the character of any devotional figure if she wants as we do not prohibit anyone from performing their art..." Narayan told ANI.

Kulkarni has appeared in commercially successful Hindi films such as Waqt Hamara Hai (1993), Krantiveer (1994), Karan Arjun (1995), Sabse Bada Khiladi (1995), Andolan (1995), Baazi (1996), China Gate (1998) and Chhupa Rustam: A Musical Thriller (2001). She quit movies after the 2002 film Kabhie Tum Kabhie Hum.