Monal Gajjar (born 13 May 1991 in Ahmedabad, Gujarat) is an Indian actress and model who has worked across Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati, Hindi, Malayalam, and Marathi films. Born into a Hindu family in Ahmedabad, her father (who passed away when she was 15) and her mother Gita Gajjar, a homemaker, raised her alongside her younger sister Hemali. She completed her schooling at Shree Saraswati Mandir High School, Gujarat, and graduated in commerce from Gujarat University, Ahmedabad. She initially worked at ING Vysya Bank, Ahmedabad. At her yoga teacher's suggestion, she participated in the Mirchi Queen Bee beauty pageant organised by Radio Mirchi (2011), appearing in a simple salwar kameez without makeup, and won the title. She subsequently won the Miss Gujarat title (2012) and was a finalist at Femina Miss India. She signed five films before her first release. Her Telugu debut came with Sudigadu (2012) and she went on to appear in over 18 films across multiple languages. Her Tamil debut was with Vanavarayan Vallavarayan and Sigaram Thodu - both released on the same day in September 2014 - with the latter opposite Vikram Prabhu earning praise for her performance. Her Malayalam debut was Dracula 2012 (2013), and she won the National Award for Best Film from Gujarat for Reva (2018) in Gujarati cinema. She has also appeared in Hindi films including Mai (2012) and Kaagaz. In 2020, Monal was the first contestant introduced to Bigg Boss Telugu Season 4, where her emotional personality and fierce competitive spirit made her a major talking point throughout the season. She was evicted in Week 14 on Day 97, finishing sixth overall.
Winning Miss Gujarat (2012) and the Mirchi Queen Bee beauty pageant (2011); Telugu films Sudigadu (2012), Vennela 1½, Oka College Story, Brother of Bommali, and Devdasi; Tamil films Sigaram Thodu (2014) and Vanavarayan Vallavarayan (2014); Gujarati National Award-winning film Reva (2018).