Who Is Mithilesh Desai, PM Modi’s Attentive Listener at Sule Wedding?

A video from Revati Sule’s wedding reception in Delhi has taken over social media, showing Prime Minister Narendra Modi leaning in to listen closely to a young man who walked up to him with his phone in hand. The reception, held on August 10 for NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule’s daughter, was attended by top leaders across party lines, including Sharad Pawar, who was seated beside PM Modi during the exchange.

The Viral Moment

In the clip, the man can be seen greeting PM Modi before holding out his phone screen and explaining something with visible enthusiasm. PM Modi appeared fully engaged, watching the screen and listening attentively throughout the brief exchange. The moment quickly went viral, with several social media users asking the same question: who was this man commanding the Prime Minister’s undivided attention at such a high-profile gathering?

Meet the “Jackfruit King”

Social media users soon identified him as Mithilesh Desai, a farmer-entrepreneur from Jhapade village in Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri district. A B.Tech graduate in Agricultural Engineering from Mahatma Phule Agricultural University, Desai had even cleared the UPSC interview stage in 2016 but chose to return to farming instead, joining his father in cultivating jackfruit. Today, he is known as the “Jackfruit King of India” for his pioneering work in jackfruit cultivation, with over 86 varieties grown under his initiative. He founded Jackfruit King Agro Producer Company Limited in 2020 and works with hundreds of farmers, besides exporting jackfruit leaves to Germany for use in cancer research. His interaction with PM Modi has now put the spotlight back on his unusual entrepreneurial journey.