Vishal Pinjani Wiki, Age, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Vishal Pinjani is an Indian LGBTIQA activist, TEDx speaker, poet, and actor. On 5 October 2023, he was crowned ‘Mr Gay India.’

Wiki/Biography

Vishal Pinjani was born on Monday, 14 February 1983 (age 40 years; as of 2023) in Kolhapur, Maharashtra. His zodiac sign is Aquarius.

He did his schooling at St. Xavier’s High School, Kolhapur. He later studied at Swami Vivekanand College, Kolhapur.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 8″

Weight (approx.): 60 kg

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Body measurements (approx.): Chest: 38″, Waist: 32″, Biceps: 14″

Family

Parents & Siblings

His mother’s name is Rajni Pinjani.

He has a sister named Deepa Pinjani.

Wife 

He is unmarried.

Gender & Sexual Orientation

Vishal Pinjani identifies as Gay. In 2022, he talked about his sexual orientation during a speech at Josh Talks. He said that when he was a kid, his family members used to ask him to behave in a masculine manner. However, when he turned 16, he decided to talk to his parents about his sexual orientation, which his parents later accepted.

Relationships/Affairs

He is in a relationship with Faroon Sheikh.

Career

Vishal Pinjani established a bookstore named ‘Granth’ in Kolhapur, Maharashtra in November 1999. Many celebrities including Soha Ali Khan, Farah Khan, and Aditya Srivastava have visited his shop.

In November 2017, he founded a community-based organisation called Abhimaan to support the LGBTQIA+ community in his hometown and in the state of Maharashtra. He often conducts workshops in different cities of India to educate people about LGBTQIA rights.

In March 2020, he started working as an excellence coach. In 2021, he appeared in the Indian gay web series ‘The Visitor.’ The web series was streamed on the YouTube channel ‘Nakshatra Bagwe.’ He also acted in season 2 and season 3 of the web series in 2022 and 2023 respectively.

Vishal Pinjani participated in the ‘Mr Gay World India’ beauty pageant held in Pune on 5 October 2023, where he was crowned Mr Gay India. In an interview, he said that winning the title would enable him to bring attention to the problems confronted by gay men in rural regions. He said,

Through this pageant, I would get a chance to highlight the issues of gay men in rural India as issues of the LGBTQ community are often perceived as only urban issues.”

Vishal Pinjani after winning the title of ‘Mr Gay India’

He also won the title of Mr Gay Maharastra 2023. He represented India in the ‘Mr Gay World’ beauty pageant, held in Cape Town, South Africa on 27 October 2023.

Award

In February 2023, he was honoured with the Social Impact Award by Ignited Humanitarian Organisation for supporting the LGBTQIA community in Kolhapur.

Car Collection

He owns a Kia car.

Facts/Trivia

• He often participates in various poet’s meetings and literary festivals.

  Vishal Pinjani during a literature festival

• During a speech at Josh Talks, Vishal Pinjani talked about being bullied because of his feminine gestures while studying in school. He said that once his seniors tried to remove his pants to confirm if he was a boy or a girl.

• In an interview, he revealed that when he was a teenager he witnessed several suicides among the gay community in his hometown within two years. These incidents had a deep impact on him after which he decided to create an organisation to educate people about the gender identites, to spread awareness about LGBTQIA rights, and to help the people belonging to the LGBTQIA community. This is what led him to establish the NGO ‘Abhimaan.’

• In 2012, he created a YouTube channel named ‘Vishal Pinjani,’ where he uploads videos related to the empowerment of the LGBTQIA community and and motivational stuff. The first video he posted on the channel was ‘How to be Happy.’

• He is often spotted consuming alcohol on various occasions.

  Vishal Pinjani consuming alcohol

• He is a fitness enthusiast and often shares his workout videos on his social media handles.

  Vishal Pinjani while working out in a gym