The Beauty Trap and Freedom from Validation

The story of 16-year-old Moni Bhosle nicknamed 'Monalisa', the flower seller with amber eyes and dusky skin who went viral at the Kumbh Mela, has left me uneasy.

- Preeti Shenoy

It's not because she is an underage minor who shot to fame solely because of her beauty, but because of what it reveals about us as a society. This teenage overnight sensation was not applauded for her grit or struggle to support her family, instead all that mattered was how she looked.

The whirlwind of attention brought her opportunities she never imagined: her first airplane ride, a diamond necklace gifted by a jewellery showroom owner in Kozhikode, and thousands of adoring fans. But the cost? Men began harassing her, and her parents, fearing for her safety, called her back home to Indore.