Wrestler Sakshi Malik had the honour and distinction of opening India's account at the 2016 Rio Olympics with a bronze medal in the women&rsquo;s 58 kg freestyle category.
She was also the one who carried the Indian flag at the Olympics closing ceremony on Sunday.
A windfall of cash rewards and incentives, amounting to over Rs 3.5 crore, fittingly awaits her.
<img title="Sakshi Malik" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2016/aug/18sakshi%20medal.jpg" alt="Sakshi Malik" width="670" height="447" />India's Olympic bronze medallist wrestler Sakshi Malik. Pic/ PTI
She is the darling of the media right now and has been thrust into the limelight from relative obscurity.
And why not. After all, Sakshi was the one who ended the country's painful wait for a medal at the Olympic Games by clinching the bronze medal in the her category, pulling off a sensational 8-5 victory over her rival in the play-off bout.
The 23-year-old wrestler in the process also became only the fourth woman athlete from India to win an Olympic medal as she earned the dramatic win after falling behind 0-5 in the do-or-die bout on day 12. Her bronze is also the first medal by an Indian woman wrestler and fifth overall for the country in the sport in Olympics.
She is from the village of Mokhra in Haryana's Rohtak district -- a bastion of patriarchy.
The fact that she has been able to overcome the 'male gaze' and snips to bring laurel to the country is noteworthy.
She is now being hailed as an icon for Indian women athletes for winning her battle over sexism in Haryana. The northern state is one of India's most conservative ones, known more for ill-treating women, 'honour killings' and sex-selective abortions.
For these and even more untold travails that she had to suffer, Sakhi Malik is a new-age 'Maharani'.
On the other hand, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Sakshi Maharaj is known for making provocative speeches regularly and being in the news for because of his controversies than other activities.
Sachchidanand Hari Sakshi, who is the&nbsp;MP from Unnao constituency in Uttar Pradesh, has been thrashed on social media platforms regularly, but he continues to stoke new controversies.
He may be a 'Maharaj', but he has no kingdom. Oh sorry! He seems to be trying to be the 'King of controversial statements'
<img title="Sakshi Maharaj" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2015/apr/Sakshi-Maharaj-m.jpg" alt="Sakshi Maharaj" width="650" height="688" /> Sakshi Maharaj
Here are some of his more controversial statements and acts in recent times.
Called Azam Khan Pakistani; advises him to have mental check-up done
After continuous rise in politicisation in Dadri lynching case, BJP leader Sakshi Maharaj went on to call Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan a 'Pakistani'. He also said that Khan has a mental illness and that he should go for a mental check up in Agra or Ranchi. (<a href="http://www.mid-day.com/articles/owaisi-backs-yakub-memon-sakshi-maharaj-says-aimim-chief-should-go-to-pakistan/16397179" target="_blank">READ MORE</a>)
Says AIMIM chief should go to Pakistan
A row broke out over the death sentence for Yakub Memon in Mumbai blasts case with AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi suggesting that he met this fate because of his religion and BJP MP Sakshi Maharaj saying those who do not respect judiciary can go to Pakistan. Sakshi Maharaj response sparked a controversy. "I think those who cannot respect this nation, cannot respect the national flag, cannot respect India's Constitution, cannot respect the judiciary such people do not have the right to live in India. The way is open, they can easily go to Pakistan," he said outside Parliament House. (<a href="http://www.mid-day.com/articles/owaisi-backs-yakub-memon-sakshi-maharaj-says-aimim-chief-should-go-to-pakistan/16397179" target="_blank">READ MORE</a>)
Links Rahul Gandhi's Kedar trip to Nepal quake
Sakshi Maharaj stirred a hornet's nest by claiming that the Nepal earthquake has been caused by 'beef-eating' Rahul Gandhi's visit to Kedarnath temple. Speaking to media in Haridwar, Sakshi Maharaj reportedly said that since Rahul Gandhi went to the holy shrine without purifying himself, the earthquake was bound to happen. (<a href="http://www.mid-day.com/articles/twitterati-slam-sakshi-maharaj-for-linking-ragas-kedar-trip-to-nepal-quake/16171160" target="_blank">READ MORE</a>)
Said people's voting right should be stripped if they difn't go for family planning
Sakshi Maharaj demanded that a strict law for family planning be brought in for all to check population growth and those who do not follow it should be stripped of their voting right. "When Hindus go for sterilisation, Muslims should also opt for it. There should be one law for everyone. There will be no appeasement of any section in our regime," he said on the sidelines of a function. "I don't say Muslims and Christians should be sterilised. But there should be family planning and a uniform law for all. When we talk of four-child issue, there is a lot of hue and cry, and when they have 40 children from four wives no one says anything," the saffron-robed MP said. (<a href="http://www.mid-day.com/articles/strip-peoples-voting-right-if-they-do-not-go-for-family-planning-sakshi-maharaj/16135161" target="_blank">READ MORE</a>)
Stokes controversy by asking Hindus to have 4 kids
He was at the centre of another controversy when he asked Hindu women to have at least four children, sparking condemnation from the opposition which alleged that the ruling party was trying to polarise the atmosphere. BJP on its part distanced itself from the remarks of Maharaj and urged its workers and public representatives to refrain from making such comments. "We have accepted the slogan 'Hum do, hamara ek'. Now these traitors are not satisfied. They have given another slogan 'Hum do aur hamara.... They are advocating marriage of a girl to a girl, boy to another boy. This is what the last government did...This is why I... want to request women to give birth to at least four children. Give one to sadhus and ascetics. Media says there are ceasefire violations happening, so send another to the border," the saffron-clad MP from Unnao said at a religious convention in Meerut. (<a href="http://www.mid-day.com/articles/sakshi-maharaj-stokes-controversy-by-asking-hindus-to-have-4-kids/15897174" target="_blank">READ MORE</a>)
Called Nathuram Godse a 'patriot'
Sakshi was at the centre of a controversy after describing Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse as a "patriot", sparking an outrage following which he retracted. The MP from Unnao said, "Godse was an aggrieved person. He may have done something by mistake but was no an anti-national. He was a patriot." (<a href="http://www.mid-day.com/articles/bjp-mp-sakshi-maharaj-sparks-row-by-calling-nathuram-godse-a-patriot-retracts/15835180" target="_blank">READ MORE</a>)
Ram temple will come up in Ayodhya
Sakshi Maharaj said a Ram temple will come up in Ayodhya and that the work to give it a "grand look" will be completed "by 2019, before Lok Sabha polls". "There was a Ram temple in Ayodhya and it will exist there in the future, too, and with a grand look. "The work to give it a grand look will be completed by 2019, before Lok Sabha polls," Maharaj told reporters. Replying to a question, the Unnao MP said that the Ram temple was not an issue concerning BJP, but saints like him. (<a href="http://www.mid-day.com/articles/ram-temple-will-come-up-in-ayodhya-with-grand-look-sakshi-maharaj/16243178" target="_blank">READ MORE</a>)
That's not&nbsp;all. He had once claimed that he was a "true Muslim" and that Prophet Mohammed was the biggest practitioner of Yoga, hence a "yogi".
His statements have left a nation red-faced on the global stage, but her act has brought fame and honour to the country.

While wrestler Sakshi Malik rules the hearts of Indians and is an icon for her Olympic performance, Sakshi Maharaj has no kingdom, but tries to rule the airwaves with controversial statements

A Maharaj and a Maharani! The tale of the two Sakshis

I could have died there: O P Jaisha

While wrestler Sakshi Malik rules the hearts of Indians and is an icon for her Olympic performance, Sakshi Maharaj has no kingdom, but tries to rule the airwaves with controversial statements

A Maharaj and a Maharani! The tale of the two Sakshis

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A Maharaj and a Maharani! The tale of the two Sakshis

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