As Urvashi Rautela now claims she never claimed that Badrinath’s Urvashi temple is dedicated to her, read the fact behind her ‘worship’ as Damdami Mai in Delhi University
After triggering outrage by claiming that there is a temple dedicated to her in Badrinath, Urvashi Rautela on Saturday claimed that her comments were misinterpreted. In a statement issued by her team, they said that she never claimed the temple was dedicated to her, and that she only mentioned that there is a Urvashi temple in Badrinath.
The statement claimed that her comments were taken out of context, and that she was actually called ‘Damdami Mai’ at Delhi University.
The statement issued in Hindi said, “Urvashi Rautela said that there is a temple in my name in Uttarakhand, not a temple of Urvashi Rautela. Now people do not even listen to things properly, just by hearing ‘Urvashi’ or ‘temple’ they have assumed that people worship Urvashi Rautela. Listen to this video properly and then speak.”
The statement further added, “Urvashi said yes, she was worshipped as ‘Damdami Mai’ in Delhi University. There is also a news article about it. Legal action should be taken against those who made confusing comments on Urvashi Rautela’s statement. It is necessary that the facts are properly investigated before making baseless allegations against any person and making derogatory comments against them. Everyone in the society should behave with respect and understanding towards each other. Only so that everyone’s rights can be protected.”
While Urvashi Rautela’s team is now claiming that she never claimed that the Badrinath temple was dedicated to her, the video of the podcast where she made the comments show that she did made that claim. She had also said that there should be another temple for her in South India, as she has acted in several South Indian movies.
During a conversation with host Siddharth Kannan, Rautela had said that the Urvashi Temple near the Badrinath Dham was built in her name. When Siddharth asked whether the temple is actually dedicated to her, she said yes, and added that people worship her there as it is a temple. She then added that a similar temple should come up in South India.
Surprised by the claim, Siddharth had asked several times whether the temple is actually dedicated to her, and she responded by saying yes every time. She never mentioned that the temple is actually for a Hindu Goddess with the same name as hers.
She then added that students from Delhi University also worship her and even garlanded her pictures, calling her ‘Damdami Mai’. “I am being serious about it. It is true. There are news articles about the same too. You can read them,” she said.
Her remarks had sparked both outrage and mockery, as the temple she was referring to is dedicated to Goddess Urvashi, not actor Urvasi Rautela. The temple is located in Bamni village near Badrinath, around 1 km away from Badrinath Dham. Priests and other locals from Badrinath slammed Rautela for her comments, saying that her statements are unacceptable. They also demanded an apology from her.
While she is now claiming that she didn’t claim the Badrinath temple is dedicated to her, she had actually said that she wishes that a similar temple should come up in South India, as she is working in Southern movies.
Worship as Damdami Mai in Delhi University
During the interview, she also added that she was worshipped as Damdami Mai at Delhi University, and the students used to garland her photograph. Today’s statement also mentions this, saying that she was actually talking about how she was worshipped as ‘Damdami Mai’ in Delhi University, and there is also a news article about it.
However, what she and her team failed to mention is that students of Hindu College in Delhi pick a celebrity, often a woman, as Damdami Mai every year on Valentine’s Day.
On the occasion, the students actually worship a tree on the campus, known as the Virgin Tree, and the ritual is known as Damdami Mai puja. During the event, they also pick a celebrity, using the name Damdami Mai for females and Damdami Papa for males. As part of this fun ritual, the boys’ hostel residents of the college had picked Urvashi Rautela as Damdami Mai in the year 2016. Kriti Sanon was also in contention for being Damdami Mai that year, but Urvashi was selected as she studied in DU’s Gargi College.
In 2017, Disha Patani was made the year’s Damdami Mai, while Hrithik Roshan was selected as Damdami Papa.
Some past photos of Virgin Tree Puja by boys of Hindu College on Valentine’s Day, with posters of Damdami Mai of the year hung from the tree
Notably, being a Valentine’s Day event, students also decorate the venue with condoms used as balloons, apart from red and pink streamers and flowers. The Puja was discontinued during the pandemic and resumed in 2023. But they have stopped picking celebrities as Damdami Mai after that.
Therefore, Urvashi Rautela was selected as Damdami Mai for one day for a specific event, and her photo was decorated with garlands on that day. But this does not mean that DU students always worshipped her, as she tried to portray in the interview.
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