By Ayesha Khan 
Vrindavan, December 17: By the time the videos began circulating on Tuesday evening, the visit was already over. Inside the quiet precincts of Shri Hit Radha Keli Kunj Ashram in Vrindavan, Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma had come and gone without announcement, without security spectacle, and without any attempt to shape the narrative that would inevitably follow. What remained were a few grainy clips, some folded hands, a bowed head, and a moment that felt unguarded in a way celebrity rarely allows.
According to NDTV Sports, the couple met Premanand Maharaj ji on December 16, soon after returning to India. They sat among other devotees, listened quietly, and spoke briefly with the spiritual leader whose influence has become an increasingly visible part of their lives.
It was not a dramatic visit. That may be precisely why it landed so heavily.
A Familiar Place, A Repeated Choice
This was not the first time Kohli and Sharma had travelled to Vrindavan this year. As reported by The Times of India, this marked their third visit to Premanand Maharaj ji in 2025. In a public culture trained to suspect one-off displays, repetition carries its own meaning.
There were no photo ops arranged. No statements issued. The footage that surfaced came from devotees present at the ashram, not from a publicity team. In one clip, Kohli sits cross-legged, eyes lowered, listening intently as the Maharaj speaks about humility and surrender.
NDTV Sports reported that Premanand Maharaj ji urged the couple to view their work as service to God, not as a pursuit driven by ego or outcome. Kohli nodded. At one point, he appeared emotional.
Nothing about the exchange seemed rehearsed.
Anushka Speaks, Kohli Listens
The moment that drew the most attention came later, captured in a short video reported by The Indian Express. Anushka Sharma, standing beside Kohli, addressed the spiritual leader with the words, “Hum aapke hain.” It was a simple sentence, heavy with devotional meaning.
As Premanand Maharaj ji replied that all things belong to the divine, Kohli’s expression changed. He looked visibly moved, his composure briefly giving way.
It was striking not because of the emotion itself, but because Kohli has spent much of his career mastering control, of self and of situation. Public vulnerability has not always come easily to him.
In recent years, though, he has spoken more openly about exhaustion, about the mental grind of elite sport, about stepping away when the noise becomes too loud. Seen in that light, the emotion did not feel out of place.
Why This Visit Stood Out
Celebrity visits to spiritual leaders are hardly unusual in India. What made this one different was timing. As noted by India Today, the visit coincided with Lionel Messi’s India tour, a high-profile event that drew attention from across the sporting world. Kohli’s absence from associated public engagements was noticed almost immediately.
There was no explanation offered. None was needed.
India Today reported that many saw the choice as reflective of changing priorities, particularly as Kohli navigates a later phase of his career and as both he and Sharma keep their personal lives increasingly insulated from public expectation.
The contrast was stark. One of the world’s biggest football stars in the country, and India’s most recognisable cricketer, is choosing a quiet ashram instead.
Public Reaction, Predictably Intense
Social media, unsurprisingly, did not stay quiet for long. According to Hindustan Times, fans reacted strongly to the visuals, praising the couple’s devotion and simplicity. A familiar refrain surfaced again. Anushka Sharma has changed Virat Kohli’s life.
It is an easy narrative, perhaps too easy. Lives are rarely reshaped by a single person or belief. Still, the perception persists, fed by images of Sharma standing calmly beside Kohli, often letting him take the lead in public while clearly anchoring him in private moments like this one.
Not everyone was convinced. Some questioned whether such personal spiritual moments should circulate at all. Others pointed out that public figures surrender privacy the moment they step into shared spaces.
Both arguments found traction.
The Man at the Centre of It All
Premanand Maharaj ji, based in Vrindavan, has built a following that cuts across age and profession. His teachings emphasise Bhakti, restraint, and the idea that surrender is not weakness but clarity. Unlike many contemporary spiritual figures, he has shown little interest in the attention that accompanies high-profile visitors. Reports indicate he made no public comment on Kohli and Sharma’s visit, and no attempt was made to frame it as an endorsement or association.
The focus, as always, remained on the discourse.
Anushka Sharma’s Chosen Distance
For Anushka Sharma, the visit fits into a broader pattern of deliberate withdrawal. Since stepping back from acting, she has resisted the constant churn of appearances and commentary that often follows celebrity women.
Hindustan Times noted that fans increasingly link her presence to Kohli’s emotional steadiness. Sharma herself has never addressed such interpretations. She has not spoken publicly about her faith, nor has she attempted to shape how it is perceived.
In Vrindavan, she was not a star. She was simply a devotee.
Kohli, Beyond the Scorecard
For Virat Kohli, the visit felt like another marker in a slow, visible recalibration. Once defined almost exclusively by numbers and milestones, his public language has shifted toward balance, detachment, and sustainability. NDTV Sports reported that Premanand Maharaj ji’s message about service resonated deeply with Kohli. It echoes sentiments Kohli himself has expressed when discussing mental health and longevity in the game.
The competitiveness remains. So does the intensity. But it no longer seems to consume everything else.
Why It Lingers
Perhaps the reason this visit has stayed in the public mind is its restraint. There was no attempt to explain, justify, or capitalise on it. No captions crafted for effect. Just a quiet appearance that escaped into the public domain despite, not because of, its participants.
In an era of constant self-disclosure, silence carries weight.
For Now
As the year edges toward its close, Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma’s visit to Premanand Maharaj ji reads less like a headline-grabbing moment and more like a personal checkpoint.
They came. They listened. They left. And in doing so, they reminded a restless public that not every meaningful choice needs an audience.
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- Ayesha Khanhttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ayesha/
- Ayesha Khanhttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ayesha/
- Ayesha Khanhttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ayesha/
- Ayesha Khanhttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ayesha/
