Bollywood actress Mamta Kulkarni’s change of name—to Shriyamai Mamta Nandgiri—represents a transformation that only she would know and experience. The 52-year-old did her last film 23 years ago; 11 years later, she wrote her autobiography, in which she said, “Some people are born for the works of the world and some are born for God. I, too, was born for God.”
And she has come a long distance from Bollywood, Mamta says: “I can’t even imagine doing films again. It is absolutely impossible for me now.” She says she turned to God soon after stepping away from films. Nobody other than she would know the pull of the divine she experienced in the face of the reviling she faced from the world.
Those opposing Mamta (more to the title bestowed upon her than to her renunciation), on the basis of her allegedly shady past are not serving Sanatan Dharm well. Men of saffron should know better than to hold her or anyone’s past against them. They should also know that God is an all- loving and compassionate entity, waiting to embrace us. As Shri Premanand ji of Vrindavan says, the moment you seek refuge in Him is the moment all negative past actions get wiped out, not just of this life, but also of past lives.
The charges against her of being involved in a drug racket have not been proved. The only thing Mamta is ‘guilty’ of, that, too, as the worldly view goes, is her love for underworld drug dealer Vicky Goswami, and that is none of anybody’s business. She has paid a price for it, she has endured, and now, she says, God is her first love.
That her renunciation ceremony has been televised and written about is not her doing, although she has been sharing the story of her evolution with the media, first through her book and now through interviews. May be, even while pursuing God, she has been looking for validation. Having received infamy, she may be trying to set the record straight. A much-maligned person may take a long time to get sorted out to a point where worldly judgement ceases to matter.
Describing her new title as an achievement, Mamta told India Today, “People of Kinnar Akhada represent the Ardhnareshwar avatar of Lord Shiva and goddess Parvati. Becoming a Mahamandaleshwar of such Akhada is like an Olympic medal after 23 years of my spiritual practices.”
On her decision to join the Kinnar Akhada, she said, “It’s only with the blessings of the Goddess Adishakti that I have been bestowed with this honour. I chose to be a part of the Kinnar Akhada because it represents freedom. There are no restrictions here.”
Mamta said, she underwent rigorous tests by four teachers who questioned her dedication to life and spirituality. Her answers eventually convinced them and led them to bestow the title of Mahamandaleshwar on her.
The main lessons from Mamta’s story– from films to sanyas, are these: The akhara that has accepted her as its leader is thoroughly democratic; enlightenment can happen to just anyone and there are no pre-conditions in turning to God.
To a sceptic who mocked Mamta’s renunciation by saying he knew of many who wore saffron “only to get back into their pants” within a couple of years, this is my answer: Even if Mamta steps back into the material world, it is entirely her business. Besides, we have the last word on that from Lord Krishna himself in Sreemad Bhagwat Geeta: Yog, he said, comes and goes. In Mamta’s case, it has come, and may it be with her to stay.
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