‘My fate will be like Rajpal Yadav’s’:Monalisa’s director asks how he can release the film after heroine’s conversion

‘Monalisa does not know that a storm is coming into her life.’
This line from the film The Diary of Manipur was once filmed on Monalisa, the young woman who gained attention as the ‘Kumbh Girl’. Now, according to those associated with her, a storm has indeed arrived in her life. Two days ago, Monalisa married a man named Farman Khan in Kerala. The development has upset her father, Jai Singh Bhonsle, a resident of Maheshwar. At the same time, film director Sanoj Mishra claims the marriage could severely affect the release of his film. Mishra says he has taken a loan of ₹10 crore to finance the project and now fears the controversy surrounding Monalisa may jeopardise its prospects. According to Mishra, the film addresses the issue of religious conversion. He believes Monalisa’s marriage to a Muslim man has created a situation that could make the film’s release difficult. Director says he learned of the marriage through news Speaking to Bhaskar in an exclusive interview, Mishra said he first heard about the marriage when someone sent him a news report yesterday afternoon. He said, ‘At first I thought it might be a media stunt connected with a film shoot, but when the situation began to escalate, I contacted her father.’ Mishra said that at the time, Jai Singh Bhonsle was standing outside a police station in Kerala while Monalisa was inside. He asked to speak with her so he could try to persuade her, but police reportedly did not allow him to meet her. Later, he was told that the police had taken Monalisa out through the back entrance, which made him realise the matter was serious. ‘She travelled to Kerala for film offer’ Mishra said Monalisa had told him about a week earlier that she needed to travel to Kerala for a film opportunity. According to him, she claimed she had signed a project in which she would play the role of a captain. He also said her father had been offered a role as her father in the film. The plan was to spend about ten days there for training before the shooting began. ‘I even told her that if she did not know Hindi properly, how would she speak Malayalam or Tamil?’ Mishra said, adding that they had no professional network in that region. According to him, neither he nor her father suspected anything unusual at the time. Concerns about film’s future and financial loss Responding to claims that Monalisa took the step because her father wanted her to marry a relative, Mishra said he had never heard about such an issue during the period they were working together. He said they had been shooting for the film until two months ago and that he had a close, family-like relationship with her. ‘If such a situation existed, she would have told me,’ he said. Mishra added that he has invested heavily in the project and is worried about the financial consequences. According to him, two years of work, a loan of ₹10 crore and even a period spent in jail during the project have all been put at risk. ‘My film was against religious conversion. Now the heroine herself has converted, how can I release the film in this situation?’ he said. Training and investment in the actress Mishra also said he spent considerable effort training Monalisa for acting. During his 35-year career, he claimed he had never invested as much time and resources into preparing an actor. He said around ₹42 lakh was spent over one and a quarter years on her training. Trainers were brought from Mumbai, and to ensure she did not have to stay away from home, accommodation for her entire family was arranged in Ujjain. He said that at present his main concern is repaying the loan, which was taken for eight months and now has only three months remaining before repayment is due. Father describes events in Kerala Monalisa’s father, Jai Singh Bhonsle, also spoke to the media about the events leading up to the marriage. He said he had previously met Farman Khan when the latter had approached them about making a film featuring Monalisa. There were discussions about signing a project, but the plan was eventually cancelled and the two families lost contact. However, according to the father, communication resumed about 20–25 days ago when Farman began speaking to Monalisa on the phone. He reportedly told them she needed better training in acting. Father says they were made to wait outside police station Bhonsle said that when they travelled to Kerala, they were not allowed to enter the police station and had to sit on the road outside for around two and a half to three hours. When he was briefly able to speak with Monalisa, she reportedly said she wanted to learn dance and acting and did not wish to return to the village. Responding to allegations that he wanted her to marry her aunt’s son, Bhonsle denied ever discussing marriage for his daughter, saying she is still young. He said the family finds it difficult to believe that a relationship developed in just a few days and suspects that Monalisa may have been influenced in some way. Appeal to daughter to return home Through the media, Monalisa’s father appealed to her to return home. He said that if any mistake had been made under someone’s influence, she should apologise to society. The family’s primary concern, he said, is her safety and well-being. They expressed hope that the government would assist in resolving the matter and ensuring that their daughter returns home safely.