Manvendra Singh Gohil
| Prince Manvendra | |||||
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| Hereditary Prince of Rajpipla | |||||
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| Born |
23 September 1965 Ajmer, Ajmer district, Rajasthan, India |
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| Spouse | Princess Chandrika Kumari of Jhabua (m. 1991 - div. 1992) |
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| House | Paramara-Gohil-Rajput | ||||
| Father | Maharana Shri Raghubir Singhji Rajendrasinghji of Rajpipla | ||||
| Mother | Princess Rukmini Devi of Jaisalmer | ||||
| Full name | |
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| Manvendra Kumar Singh Gohil |
Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil (born 23 September 1965) is an Indian prince who is the son and probable heir of the Maharaja of Rajpipla in Gujarat. He is the first openly gay prince in the world. He runs a charity, The Lakshya Trust, which works with the LGBT community.
Manvendra was born at Ajmer, the only son of Maharana Shri Raghubir Singhji Rajendrasinghji Sahib, Maharana of Rajpipla, and his wife Maharani Rukmini Devi. Manvendra's mother was born as a princess of Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. Manvendra has one sister, Minaxi Kumari, who is married into the princely family of Chenani in Jammu and Kashmir.
In 1971, the government of India "de-recognized" the Indian princes, and Manvendra's father consequently lost the title of Maharaja and the privy purse (an annual pension) that came with it. The princes adjusted to the new socialist regime; the Rajpipla royals converted their family seat, the Rajvant Palace in Rajpipla, into a tourist resort and location for film-shooting. They also set up a second residence in Mumbai, so that their children could have a somewhat normal childhood and adjust better to the realities of their new circumstances.
Manvendra had a traditional and conservative upbringing. He was educated at Bombay Scottish School and at the Amrutben Jivanlal College of Commerce and Economics (one of the institutions in the Mithibai College campus in Vile Parle, Mumbai.
As the only son of the Maharaja of Rajpipla, Manvendra was raised with a sense of history and family dignity, in a manner that made him deeply conscious of his responsibilities, primary among which was perpetuation of the dynasty. As per Indian custom, his parents arranged a suitable match for him, and in January 1991, Manvendra married Chandrika Kumari, a princess of Jhabua state in Madhya Pradesh. Manvendra says about his marriage:
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