A bizarre love gesture in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, has turned into a costly lesson after a car was covered with thousands of lipstick marks.
What could be a romantic surprise was immediately followed up by police action and the car owner was fined ₹5,500 and asked to clean the car.
The car had around 3,400 lipstick marks on its exterior, the newspaper reported. The unusual display seemed to be part of a romantic stunt, but authorities didn’t view it only as an expression of love, they said.
The incident has raised awareness online about the line between celebrating and being a public nuisance. Although romantic gestures are decorations, messages or surprises, lipstick marks on a car can create cleaning problems and leave the car looking different.
Police issued a ₹5,500 fine to the vehicle owner. The owner was also told to clean up the lipstick marks and the car. It’s rare that a public stunt would result in punishment, but it only happens when it causes inconvenience or is outside the bounds of the law.
Such a large number of lipstick marks is a big story in itself: Three thousand four hundred marks on a single car is an unusual sight, and the story has been received by people who have found it funny and those who have questioned the decision behind the stunt.
Girlfriend leaves 3,400 #kiss marks on boyfriend’s car!
— Glint Insights Network (@glintinn) August 25, 2026
In Gwalior, #MadhyaPradesh , a woman reportedly left around 3,400 kiss marks on her boyfriend’s car in 3.5 hours.
Police stopped the car, issued a ₹5,500 challan and made him clean the marks off.#Gwalior pic.twitter.com/KWkohQpfup
Social media users have been posting and discussing the event in the wake of that; some are focusing on the scale of the gesture.
For some it’s an overkill by which to show love. Others have said romantic surprises can be planned without damage, and they don’t create a mess or lead to police action.
The incident also serves as a reminder for vehicle owners to be careful when allowing their cars to become part of public celebrations or stunts. Even if the intention is harmless, the consequences can include cleaning expenses, complaints or fines.
For the Gwalior stunt perpetrator, the memorable romantic gesture that may have been meant as a memorable romantic gesture will now become a very unusual story.
Instead of telling the story of love and a perfect ending, this episode ended with a police fine and a cleaning job.
The penalty of ₹5,500 may be a small price compared to the attention the stunt has received.
But the unusual Gwalior incident shows that love gestures can quickly become a public issue when they go too far.
