A Twitter user, Asmita Ghosh, shared details of a wedding she was attending and it has since then been going viral for its progressive stand.
The wedding was conducted by female pandits based in Kolkata, who, while introducing the bride, first took the name of the mother and then the father.
A significant gesture ringing in 2019 right, considering in the structure of a family the mother figure is usually seen as secondary to the father figure or the patriarch.
Furthermore, the bride’s father gave a speech as to why he won’t perform kanyadaan, explaining that his daughter is not his property to give away.
Twitterati also lauded and supported the gesture.
The tweet went viral, beyond Asmita’s expectations, and was also met with trolling. Following which, she later posted a clarification from the bride’s father’s side in response to the trolls.
The post clarifies views on Gandharv marriage in Vedic scriptures, which entails that parents need not give their consent for the wedding and that there was never any concept of Kanyadaan in Gandharv marriage.
Gandharv marriage is a voluntary union of the bride and the groom and according to the post it was quite popular in the Vedic period.
This gesture is a unique and progressive occurrence where we see rituals being molded as per the needs of time.