Yukta Mookhey is the fourth Indian to win the title of Miss World. Despite her looks and talent, Yukta could never succeed as a leading star.
In Bollywood, we have seen several actors who were successful supermodels and beauty pageant winners. However, not every model could be a bankable star. Today, we will discuss an actress who has been the title holder of a reputed beauty pageant. She has been a world-famous model, but sadly, her Bollywood career was short-lived, and her personal life has suffered a few major setbacks. Yukta Mookhey is a well-known model, but she failed as an actress, and she's unlucky in love.
Yukta Mookhey's early background
Yukta was born on October 7, 1977, in Bangalore in a Sindhi family. Yukta was raised in Dubai until seven. Later, her parents moved back to Mumbai in 1987. Yukta's mother, Aroona, used to run a grooming salon in Santa Cruz, and her father, Inderlal Mookhey, was a former Managing Director of a clothing company. After school, Yukta studied zoology. She also acquired a diploma in computer sciences from Aptech and has studied Hindustani classical music for three years.
Yukta's journey to becoming Miss World
In 1999, Mookhey participated in the Femina Miss India contest and impressed judges, becoming Miss India World 1999 by the outgoing titleholder Annie Thomas. Mookhey's win made her eligible to participate and represent India at Miss World. The 49th edition of the Miss World pageant was held on 4 December 1999 at Olympia, London, with 93 delegates from around the world competing for the title. Yukta beat 92 delegates and became the fourth Indian to be crowned Miss World title, after Reita Faria (1966), Aishwarya Rai (1994) and Diana Hayden (1997).
Yukta's dwindling journey in Bollywood
After Miss World, Yukta Mookhey got several acting offers, and she decided to take the next step in her career. Yukta entered into movies with Tamil film, Ajith Kumar-starrer Poovellam Un Vasam (2001). Soon after the Tamil debut, Yukta was offered a Hindi film, and she made her Hindi debut with Aftab Shivdasani's Pyasa (2002). Aftab's film with Yukta was a major flop at the box office and gave a rocky start to her career. Yukta was later signed for Market (2003), but she had to exit the film due to her injury. In 2003, Yukta signed Kab Kyon Kahan and Hum Teeno, but both got shelved. Yukta was signed for Insaaf The Justice, but she had to drop from the project. Yukta's career never took off and was unhappy with the way her career shaped up. Yukta even did regional films but failed to achieve success there as well. Yukta's last film, Good Newwz (2019), came after a gap of 9 years, and since then, she has not done any film.
Yukta Mookhey: Unlucky in career, unlucky in love
After getting disheartened by her career, Yukta decided to settle down. Yukta got married to New York-based businessman and financial consultant, Prince Tuli, on September 2008. The two even became parents to a son. A few years later, Yukta made headlines after she accused her husband of domestic violence and harassment.
According to a 2013 report by PTI, Mookhey filed an FIR against her husband for allegedly beating up. The report quoted an officer from Amboli police station that said, "In her complaint, Mookhey alleged she had often been beaten up and troubled by her husband Prince Tuli. An FIR has been registered under Section 498A (cruelty and harassment) and Section 377 (unnatural sex) of Indian Penal Code after her complaint." In June 2014, the couple parted ways by a consensual divorce, and Yuvika took her son with her to India.
Where is Yukta now?
Yukta is now living in India with her child as a single mother, and she's now working as a social activist. Yukta has voiced against illegal child labour carried out in India's firecracker industries. Yukta has worked for the people affected by HIV/AIDS, breast cancer and thalassemia. Mookhey is also an environmental activist, and she has been the face of several cleanliness drives.
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