Patna: Popular folk singer Maithili Thakur, known for her soulful renditions of Mithila’s traditional songs, has officially joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The induction ceremony was held at Hotel Chanakya in Patna, where BJP state president Dilip Jaiswal handed her the party membership in the presence of senior leaders and supporters.
Alongside her, RJD MLA Bharat Bind also joined the BJP. Speaking at the event, Jaiswal said, “In the coming days, many more leaders from the Grand Alliance will join the BJP.”
Given Thakur’s massive social media following and her strong influence in the Mithila region, party insiders believe she could be made one of the BJP’s key faces in the campaign for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections.
Speculation about Thakur’s political debut had been building ever since a photograph surfaced showing her with BJP election in-charge Vinod Tawde and Union Minister Nityanand Rai. Reports now indicate that she may contest from the Alinagar constituency in Darbhanga, although Thakur has also expressed her wish to represent her native village area.
Born on 25 July 2000, Maithili Thakur hails from Benipatti village in Madhubani. Trained in classical and folk music by her father Ramesh Thakur, she rose to fame after appearing on TV shows such as Sa Re Ga Ma Pa and Rising Star, where she emerged as a finalist. Her melodious performances on social media have earned her more than 13 million followers on Facebook and 3.7 million on YouTube.
Thakur has been honoured with several awards, including the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar by the Sangeet Natak Akademi and the National Creators Award by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In 2024, she was appointed as the brand ambassador of the Bihar Khadi Village Industries Board and also served as the Election Commission of India’s youth ambassador during the Lok Sabha polls.
Speaking about her musical journey, Thakur once shared how her family’s financial struggles in Delhi shaped her dedication to music. Despite repeated rejections from talent shows, she persevered — eventually becoming a symbol of Bihar’s cultural pride and a voice of the new generation of artists from Mithila.
