Introduction: Body Mass Index plays a vital role for early adolescents for their physical look and psychological well-being. In India, body weight is directly associated with their social life. In urban areas, adolescents are involved in various dietary activities to reduce body weight and they are more conscious for their body image than the rural counterparts. During the last decades, the increase in the rate of children and adolescents that are overweight or obese is alarming and it is related with the lower social competency and low self- esteem. Objective: is to examine the relationship between BMI and self-esteem among early adolescent. Method: Quantitative approach and descriptive correlational design was adopted. 60 participants are included in the study by using simple random sampling technique. An explanation about the purpose and the nature of the study was explained for each participant. The subjects were asked to complete the questionnaire and measured their weight and height. The tools consist of three sections to collect data: the sociodemographic, Body Mass Index and Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale (RSE). The validity and reliability of the measurements were ensured. Data was collected from the private school. Results: The mean and standard deviation of Body Mass Index are (Mean 18.56, SD 5.61) and the level of self-esteem (Mean 36.2, SD 9.04). Pearson’s correlation showed that there was a significant negative correlation between Body Mass Index (BMI) and self esteem score (r = –0.4). Conclusion: The self esteem decrease while with the increase in body mass index among early adolescent

Keywords: Body mass index; Self-esteem; Obesity.