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. Photo - Nishu Tiwari/YT