Bengal man gifts wife ‘moon land’ after Chandrayaan-3 success
text_fields
A man from Jhargram district in West Bengal has gifted his wife an extraordinary birthday present: a piece of lunar land.
Sanjay Mahato fulfilled the promise he made to his wife before marrying her, by purchasing one acre of land on the Moon for Rs10,000.
This unique gift, he says, was inspired by the success of India's Chandrayaan-3 mission, which reignited his belief in making his wife's dream come true.
“Me and my wife courted for a long time and then got married last April. I had promised to bring the Moon to her. I couldn’t live up to that promise. But now, on her first birthday after our wedding, I thought why not gift her a plot on the Moon,” Mahato explained with a beaming smile.
With help from his friend, he completed the purchase through Luna Society International, a process that took approximately a year. “I brought one acre of land on the Moon for her,” Mahato said, as he held a registration paper in his hand which had ‘Registered claim and deed for lunar property’ written on it, signifying his ownership.
When asked about the alternative gifts he could have chosen with the same amount of money, Mahato said, “Yes, I could have. But the Moon holds a special place in both our hearts. So, on her first birthday as a married couple, I couldn’t think of anything better.”
While physically visiting their lunar property is impossible, Mahato said him and his wife Anumika often sit in their garden, gaze up at the Moon, and feel a deep connection to the celestial body that has become an integral part of their love story.
Private ownership of outer space is not practically feasible, but gifting websites still offer the opportunity to ‘sell pieces of moon land’ and provide 'certification' to those willing to 'buy' them.
Even before India's Chandrayaan-3 success, many Indians have shown interest in acquiring land on the Moon.
In 2020, a man in Rajasthan's Ajmer gifted his wife three acres of Moon land on their wedding anniversary. Dharmendra Anija explained that he made this purchase to do something special for his wife, Sapna Anija, on their eighth anniversary.
In 2018, the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput claimed to have bought a piece of lunar land on the far side of the Moon in a region known as the Mare Muscoviense, or the "Sea of Muscovy."
Neeraj Kumar, a resident of Bodh Gaya, also followed suit by purchasing one acre of lunar land on his birthday, after getting inspiration from actors Shah Rukh Khan and the late Sushant Singh Rajput.
