This weekend saw three girls send back their baraats because they found the groom unsuitable or a bit too demanding. In a country where marriages are a religion and sending the baraat back a sin, it’s good to see such incidents, that too in the rural pockets of India.
When bride Meena (name changed) stepped into the mandap for the jaimaal ceremony, she was shocked to see that the groom was much older than she had been told. Infuriated she immediately stepped down and refused to get married. While some people tried to intervene on behalf of the groom, the girl did not budge. “The groom’s parents cheated us. Before the marriage, they said he is 25 years old, but he turned out to be 38. How can we marry an 18-year-old girl to him?” a relative told Times of India. “We decided not to pressure her as it is the question of her whole life,” he added. The fact that the girl hails from Jainagar, in Kannauj district, does add to the incident. Villages in India ride high on child marriage stats and Meena and her family just set an inspiring example.
Another groom from Shardanagar, Telibagh was shown the door by the bride and her relatives after his family demanded dowry during the nikaah ceremony. Just as the maulvi was conducting the ceremony, the groom demanded a motorcycle, among other things from the girl’s family. While they promised to give him what he demanded, the groom again created a scene the next day when there was a delay in serving refreshments. Appalled by her in-law’s greed the bride decided to leave with the groom and his family.
Another incident saw Kavita (name changed) from Bandhurkurd village of Hamirpur district refuse to marry her groom after she found out that he was physically challenged. “The girl was first informed by her friends that her groom was limping and was unsuitable for her,” the police said. They were called in when the groom’s parents, siblings and relatives were held captive and beaten up for hiding the disability. The bride took one look at her groom and backed out of the wedding instead of being pressurised into a difficult marriage.
These three incidents are a ray of hope in a culture which stands tall in shaming unmarried girls. Set in the rural pockets of our country, such incidents are enough to break through the mindset that marriages are the ultimate aim in life. Refusing to give in to irrational demands or getting duped, we love these three girls and the examples they are setting.
Image courtesy: BCCL
More On >> Balancing Act
