‘Hear her’: Madhya Pradesh HC sets aside viral Kumbh Mela girl Monalisa Bhosle’s birth record change

Bhopal: In a major relief for social media personality Monalisa Bhosle, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has set aside an administrative order that altered her recorded date of birth, effectively placing her below the legal age of adulthood following her interfaith marriage. A division bench sitting at Indore ruled that municipal authorities erred by unilaterally changing her birth records without granting her a formal hearing.

Justice Gajendra Singh issued a sharp rebuke regarding the timing of her father's petition, observing that he had “moved earth and heaven only after Petitioner Number 1 exercised her right of personal choice and chose to marry Petitioner Number 2”.

Representing the petitioners, Senior Advocate Vivek Krishna Tankha alongside advocate Jerry Lopez presented primary identification documents, including standard national identity cards and voter identification, corroborating her birth date as January 1, 2008.

 

Administrative breach and denial of natural justice

The controversy centers on a March 31 order issued by the Chief Municipal Officer of Maheshwar, which revoked Monalisa's initial birth record (January 1, 2008) and registered a new date of December 30, 2009. The alteration rendered her 16 years old at the time of her 11 March wedding to actor Farman Khan, down from 18.

The High Court emphasised that altering an individual's official birth date carries profound constitutional and civil consequences.

“When petitioner number 1 is the aggrieved, then intimation only to the father does not satisfy the requirement of ‘audi alteram partem’... Exercise of right to choice especially in the matter of marriage is exposed to risk including the criminal prosecution of her partner.”

The bench noted that modifying her recorded age by nearly two years directly impacted her fundamental civil rights, including her voting eligibility, contractual autonomy and right to choose a spouse.

 

What the dispute was

Monalisa Bhosle rose to national prominence during the 2025 Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj while selling decorative garlands, subsequently receiving film opportunities and building a substantial online following.

According to court filings, her relationship with Farman Khan developed during a film production schedule in Kerala. Facing family pressure to enter an arranged marriage in Madhya Pradesh, the couple sought assistance from Thampanoor police in Thiruvananthapuram, who verified her adult identity documents before the couple solemnised their marriage at Poovar.

Subsequent challenges by her family led to conflicting claims.

Her father's account: Relied on a hospital register entry from the Maheshwar Community Health Centre recording a birth on December 30 2009, asserting her earlier certificate was based on an inaccurate parental estimate.

The couple's defense: Alleged that family members manipulated records belonging to her younger brother to falsely portray her as a minor and invalidate her choice of partner.

 

Scope of the ruling

While the High Court set aside the municipal cancellation on procedural grounds, it did not issue a final determination on which birth date is accurate. The court directed the Maheshwar municipal authority to re-examine her father's application after providing Monalisa a comprehensive hearing.

The ruling explicitly leaves the validity of the marriage and ongoing criminal proceedings to be determined in their appropriate legal forums.