What happened to Ranu Mondal after her overnight rise to fame?
Ranu Mondal's story, in all probability, is nothing short of tragic - a visual representation of riches to rags, and a metaphoric proof of the fact that fame is but fleeting.
There was a time when social media users could hardly focus on anyone else but Ranu Mondal - the woman from Bengal who became an overnight sensation after a video of her singing Ek Pyaar Ka Nagma Hai at the Ranaghat Railway Station went viral in August 2019.
This was followed by Mondal singing Teri Meri Kahani for Himesh Reshammiya’s film Happy Hardy and Heer, her appearance on a reality show, collaborations with Bangladeshi superstar Hero Alom, and a whirlwind of public attention.
But now, around four years later, all that the internet has observed about Mondal is radio silence. So, where is Ranu Mondal?
Her story, in all probability, is nothing short of tragic - a visual representation of riches to rags, and a metaphoric proof of the fact that fame is but fleeting.
YouTuber Nisha Tiwari recently visited Mondal at her residence in Ranaghat - a dilapidated house secured with a collapsible gate. A cursory glance at the video recorded by Tiwari serves as grim proof of a cruel twist of fate, an ugly game destiny played with Mondal by letting her taste fame at its peak before casting her into obscurity.
Behind the collapsible gate lie rooms with belongings scattered all around - a broken chair, construction material strewn across the floor, cockroaches crawling, and a “stench of the bathroom” with “garbage all around,” in Tiwari’s words.
“Ghar ki condition thodi daamadol hai, dekho yeh namak, aata sab faila hua hai (The condition of the house is quite unstable. Look, everything is scattered around, salt flour),” Tiwari says. Mondal replies in English, which she says she learned while living in Mumbai: “Because, I don’t have containers.”
As seen in the video, Tiwari greets Mondal with food, juice bottles, and snacks. While Mondal was eating, a man was spotted standing outside the house. When asked about her, he told Tiwari, “Inke dimaag mein thoda problem hai (She has some mental issues).”
Speaking about Mondal’s condition, Tiwari says: “Aaj ki date mein yeh dimaagi taur par bilkul theek nahi hai. Ranu Mondal ko na hi kuch yaad rehta hai, na hi kuch samajh aata hai. Yahaan tak ki woh apni kahi hui baat bhi paanch minute mein bhool jaati hain. Kabhi woh kehti hai ki unhone bohot paise kamaaye, aur kabhi kehti hain ki unke saath fraud hua. Kabhi achanak se hansne lagti hain aur kabhi gussa kar deti hain. Iss mental condition ki wajah se, ab unki kisi bhi baat par poori tarah se yakeen nahi kiya jaata hai (As of today, she is not mentally well. Ranu Mondal neither remembers things nor fully understands them. She even forgets what she herself said within five minutes. Sometimes she says she earned a lot of money, sometimes she says she was cheated. At times she suddenly starts laughing, and at other times she gets angry. Because of this mental condition, it has become difficult to fully trust anything she says).”
When asked whether she still speaks to Himesh Reshammiya, Mondal replies: “Arre, Reshammiya, toh unko toh risk lene ka hota hai, toh risk le lete hain (Oh, Reshammiya he has to take risks, so he takes them).”
Mondal’s survival now depends largely on visitors. Some people bring her food, while others give her money. A woman who visited Mondal while Tiwari was recording said that Mondal asked her to clear a shop bill of Rs 235 on her behalf.
The video that catapulted Ranu Mondal to overnight fame was originally recorded by Atindra Chakraborty, an engineer who shared the clip on Facebook.
As the video went viral, a Mumbai-based entertainment channel invited Mondal to participate in a music reality show. Her appearance on the show turned her into a star, with Himesh Reshammiya serving as one of the judges. Impressed by her voice, Reshammiya asked her to sing for his film. Mondal agreed and provided vocals to several songs - Teri Meri Kahani, Aashiqui Mein Teri 2.0, and Aadat - in Happy Hardy and Heer.
Following the release of her songs, Mondal also reunited with her daughter Sathi. Both were out of touch, and it was only after Mondal’s sudden fame that Sathi managed to find her mother.
In November 2019, Mondal faced backlash after a video surfaced showing her snubbing a fan. Two years later, she was spotted singing Sri Lankan singer Yohani Diloka De Silva’s Manike Mage Hithe in a video shared by YouTuber Rondhon Porichoy. In 2022, she also recorded a song with Bangladeshi superstar Hero Alom.
And that was likely the last the internet heard of Ranu Mondal. Now, four years later, what remains is not the applause, but a woman navigating life, one day at a time, after the spotlight moved on.
There was a time when social media users could hardly focus on anyone else but Ranu Mondal - the woman from Bengal who became an overnight sensation after a video of her singing Ek Pyaar Ka Nagma Hai at the Ranaghat Railway Station went viral in August 2019.
This was followed by Mondal singing Teri Meri Kahani for Himesh Reshammiya’s film Happy Hardy and Heer, her appearance on a reality show, collaborations with Bangladeshi superstar Hero Alom, and a whirlwind of public attention.
But now, around four years later, all that the internet has observed about Mondal is radio silence. So, where is Ranu Mondal?
Her story, in all probability, is nothing short of tragic - a visual representation of riches to rags, and a metaphoric proof of the fact that fame is but fleeting.
YouTuber Nisha Tiwari recently visited Mondal at her residence in Ranaghat - a dilapidated house secured with a collapsible gate. A cursory glance at the video recorded by Tiwari serves as grim proof of a cruel twist of fate, an ugly game destiny played with Mondal by letting her taste fame at its peak before casting her into obscurity.
Behind the collapsible gate lie rooms with belongings scattered all around - a broken chair, construction material strewn across the floor, cockroaches crawling, and a “stench of the bathroom” with “garbage all around,” in Tiwari’s words.
“Ghar ki condition thodi daamadol hai, dekho yeh namak, aata sab faila hua hai (The condition of the house is quite unstable. Look, everything is scattered around, salt flour),” Tiwari says. Mondal replies in English, which she says she learned while living in Mumbai: “Because, I don’t have containers.”
As seen in the video, Tiwari greets Mondal with food, juice bottles, and snacks. While Mondal was eating, a man was spotted standing outside the house. When asked about her, he told Tiwari, “Inke dimaag mein thoda problem hai (She has some mental issues).”
Speaking about Mondal’s condition, Tiwari says: “Aaj ki date mein yeh dimaagi taur par bilkul theek nahi hai. Ranu Mondal ko na hi kuch yaad rehta hai, na hi kuch samajh aata hai. Yahaan tak ki woh apni kahi hui baat bhi paanch minute mein bhool jaati hain. Kabhi woh kehti hai ki unhone bohot paise kamaaye, aur kabhi kehti hain ki unke saath fraud hua. Kabhi achanak se hansne lagti hain aur kabhi gussa kar deti hain. Iss mental condition ki wajah se, ab unki kisi bhi baat par poori tarah se yakeen nahi kiya jaata hai (As of today, she is not mentally well. Ranu Mondal neither remembers things nor fully understands them. She even forgets what she herself said within five minutes. Sometimes she says she earned a lot of money, sometimes she says she was cheated. At times she suddenly starts laughing, and at other times she gets angry. Because of this mental condition, it has become difficult to fully trust anything she says).”
When asked whether she still speaks to Himesh Reshammiya, Mondal replies: “Arre, Reshammiya, toh unko toh risk lene ka hota hai, toh risk le lete hain (Oh, Reshammiya he has to take risks, so he takes them).”
Mondal’s survival now depends largely on visitors. Some people bring her food, while others give her money. A woman who visited Mondal while Tiwari was recording said that Mondal asked her to clear a shop bill of Rs 235 on her behalf.
The video that catapulted Ranu Mondal to overnight fame was originally recorded by Atindra Chakraborty, an engineer who shared the clip on Facebook.
As the video went viral, a Mumbai-based entertainment channel invited Mondal to participate in a music reality show. Her appearance on the show turned her into a star, with Himesh Reshammiya serving as one of the judges. Impressed by her voice, Reshammiya asked her to sing for his film. Mondal agreed and provided vocals to several songs - Teri Meri Kahani, Aashiqui Mein Teri 2.0, and Aadat - in Happy Hardy and Heer.
Following the release of her songs, Mondal also reunited with her daughter Sathi. Both were out of touch, and it was only after Mondal’s sudden fame that Sathi managed to find her mother.
In November 2019, Mondal faced backlash after a video surfaced showing her snubbing a fan. Two years later, she was spotted singing Sri Lankan singer Yohani Diloka De Silva’s Manike Mage Hithe in a video shared by YouTuber Rondhon Porichoy. In 2022, she also recorded a song with Bangladeshi superstar Hero Alom.
And that was likely the last the internet heard of Ranu Mondal. Now, four years later, what remains is not the applause, but a woman navigating life, one day at a time, after the spotlight moved on.