Dr.K.Veeramani
Saravanan of Dharmapuri district and Lakshmi of Thiruvannamalai district in Tamil Nadu were to get married in a temple on 10th December 2021. Did they infact get married? No. Crooked Nature played spoilsport and the wedding stood cancelled.
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To cut a long story short, none from the family of the bridegroom Saravanan turned up at the venue. The parents of the bride Lakshmi and her relatives were on tenter-hooks. Some of them rushed to the groom’s house where Saravanan was found in an inebriated condition.
Lakshmi wept profusely and refused to marry the drunkard. Hungry guests went back home. Lakshmi’s parents lodged a complaint at the police station in the vicinity. They sought the help of the police to recover from Saravanan’s family, the entire amount they had wasted over the wedding arrangements.
As a twist in the tale, Saravanan, who returned to normalcy, begged the girl to marry him. He apologised and promised to become a teetotaller. But she was stubborn in her decision. Saravanan went back home deeply hurt and humiliated. Lakshmi’s parents heaved a sigh of relief since it was a great escape for their daughter.
This news got flashed the following day in print media. Hats off to the girl who proved that she is a New Age Woman. She and her parents deserve our praise. Thanthai Periyar strove for women-empowerment. He advised women to safeguard their self respect and fight for their right. Time and again we find somewhere someone practically following Periyar’s principles and Periyar thought. This marriage refusal incident could be cited as an instance.
Long ago, the bridegroom and the bride were not allowed even to look at each other. No one bothered to ask for their willingness and consent. Only at the moment of the nuptial knot the couple used to sheepishly exchange glances surreptitiously. That was then, before the beginning of self respect movement. And this is now. What a marvelous reform!
Parents used to bother about the caste of the boy. Never did they care to check his conduct. It was all over for them once they dumped someone on the girl. But in today’s modern era Periyar Thoughts have emboldened our womenfolk. Drunkards can never take them for a ride by their false promises. We would like to say to every woman – “Woman! Know Yourself. You are not a ball of clay. You are not just flesh and blood. You are Humanity!”
Translated by : M. R. Manohar
