Mary D’Costa, the woman whose name unexpectedly surfaced in the Smriti Mandhana–Palash Muchhal wedding controversy, says she has been receiving rape threats and a barrage of abusive messages after screenshots of her old chats with Muchhal went viral.
She took to Instagram to call out the harassment and clarify her position as rumours about the postponed wedding continue to rage online.
In her Instagram stories on Thursday, D’Costa shared multiple screenshots of the threats she has received over the last 24 hours. The messages are filled with misogynistic abuse, violent language and racial slurs. Some accuse her of seeking attention, while others blamed her directly for the disruption of the high-profile wedding events.
One message said: “felt like hitting her with stones.'
The wave of trolling began soon after Reddit and Instagram posts started floating theories about why cricketer Smriti Mandhana and music composer Palash Muchhal postponed their wedding last weekend. While Mandhana stated that the wedding was pushed due to her father’s sudden health scare, unverified allegations began spreading online. Among them were screenshots purportedly showing chats between D’Costa and Palash.
D’Costa stepped forward to set the record straight. In a long Instagram note, she wrote that she had never met Palash Muchhal in person and that their chats were limited to a short window earlier this year. “First, the exchange of chats happened between April 29th and May 30th 2025, so the contact lasted for only one month. I want to make it absolutely clear that I never met him and I never got involved with him in any way,” she wrote.
She added that she had actually put the chats out months ago. “I shared the chats in July, but nobody noticed.” She also dismissed rumours linking her to the wedding arrangements. “I am not the choreographer, and I am not the person he cheated with,” she wrote, saying that people were confusing her with someone else.
Mandhana and Muchhal were set to marry on November 23 in Sangli, Maharashtra. Their sangeet and haldi took place as planned, with family, friends and several members of the Indian women’s cricket team attending. The wedding, however, was postponed after Mandhana’s father was hospitalised. Later that night, Palash was also admitted to a Mumbai hospital due to exhaustion and stress.
Fueling more speculation, Smriti removed photos and videos from her engagement and pre-wedding events from Instagram. Posts shared by teammates were deleted as well.
Amid growing rumours, Palash Muchhal’s cousin Neeti Tak urged people to stop judging him based on assumptions. “Technology today has come much ahead of humans, that is why people should not judge Palash in the face of rumours… pray for him,” she said.
Another was a series of graphic threats. Several users used demeaning language and attacked her appearance and character. Sharing the screenshots, D’Costa wrote that she had “no words” for the level of hostility being directed at her.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
