Indian women are no strangers to patriarchal wedding rituals. From customs like washing the groom’s feet to offering dowry and ‘gifts’ to the dulha’s side, most ceremonies are rife with rituals that aren’t exactly empowering. SHM, we totally don’t stan this! Men, on the other hand, have the bar so low. Not only do these archaic traditions favour them, but they also get heavily praised for challenging dated wedding practices. One such instance is this adorable video of a groom who is giving his bride the respect and love she deserves.
In this video that has taken the Internet by storm, a groom is seen touching the feet of his bride. In many Indian weddings, the bride is made to take the ‘blessings’ for her husband and the act is also considered as a sign of respect (the same way we touch the feet of our elders). While all this seems reasonable, it is totally one-sided. It stems from years of conditioning and the way in which we view women. So, kudos to this groom for challenging this archaic practice with his sweet gesture. While we love that there is a change in these run-down practices, we’re hoping for a day when such gestures don’t surprise us anymore.
The bride, Diti Goradia Roy, took to the ‘Gram and uploaded this video that has now gone viral. According to her caption, the pundit wasn’t a big fan of the groom’s gesture. She said, “Our pandit didn’t like this at all. But by the end of the ceremony, he whispered to me: “You are one very lucky girl.””. While the pundit’s statement may seem well-intended, it does come with a hint of sexism. Because why isn’t the groom lucky to have her? Is she just supposed to consider herself lucky because he touched her feet? And what about all the other sea of women who touch their husband’s feet?
The comment section too agreed that the man was being handed a medal for what should be the norm. A netizen commented, “It’s 2022 and we’re still praising guys trying to change old and stupid rituals. Totally wondering why men are “praised” for treating women as equal.” TBH, we couldn’t agree more.
As for this groom and bride, we wish them nothing but the best. While we love that this groom didn’t hesitate to touch his bride’s feet, we feel like all men should be doing this from now on. So, gentlemen, are you taking notes?
Feature Image Credit – Instagram
