‘Stop romanticising marriage’: Ridhi Dogra pens note after Bhopal dowry death, urges women to educate themselves

As Twisha Sharma and Deepika Nagar's death cases continue to ignite debate around dowry and marriage, actor Ridhi Dogra has shared a hardhitting note. 

The last few days have seen a slew of deaths, especially of young women, related to dowry harassment and mental torture. The alleged dowry death case sent shockwaves across the nation when a 33-year-old woman was found dead at her home in Bhopal. Actor Ridhi Dogra now reacted to the recent tragedies and penned a long note for young women, advising them to educate themselves and not expect boyfriends to become ‘prince charming’ after marriage.

What Ridhi said

Taking to her Instagram account, Ridhi shared a long note to talk about marriage and feminism. She began, “Please stop romanticising marriage. The age of your parents and the world they grew up in has expired. Marriage is not the same. Boys should know that girls will not do what you ask them to blindly. Because laws etc has empowered them. Today, They can get a job/a place to stay/an income and live peacefully in society. So they don’t need to follow you and your orders like lambs. Girls don’t need marriage for survival. For Companionship. Yes. But not for dependency. Even if they wish to — out of love… Their individuality will try and knock their head time and again. They will be frustrated because the world has changed.”

She added, “And girls – pls don’t expect your boyfriends to become. Mr Prince Charming after marriage. They are human too and are figuring this new world out. It’s more new for them because they have seen men being men.”

The actor also said, “But if society norms have shifted and what was required of them earlier has changed too. Pls don’t expect any fairy tale. Educate yourself. Live for your self. And please stand up for yourself. Don’t expect anyone. To come and stand up for you. marry each other for love and respect. marry a person you love as a PERSON. And pls keep your parents out of your life. And if you can’t live life without including others. It’s a crowd. A respectful union of marriage is between two. Never more.”

Talking about how the meaning of feminism has been reduced to ‘***t’, the actor went on to add, “True feminism is just equality. That’s it. Nothing more and nothing less. When I speak for girls I also speak for boys. When I argue for mental Health. It’s for both genders. Feminism was never about putting men down. Yes it’s started all Loud and angry because that’s how every revolution starts. That’s not how it is today. Today, women have opportunities. Times have changed. What every woman fought for exists in practice. Let’s also never forget….. We are from the land of Shiv and Shakti. Both go together.”

About the recent cases

Twisha Sharma, a 33-year-old model-turned-actor from Noida, was found hanging at her marital home in Bhopal's Katara Hills area on May 12. While her in-laws allege she suffered from drug addiction, her family maintains she was harassed for dowry, leading to her death.

Following Twisha's death, Bhopal police registered an FIR under Sections 80(2) (dowry death), 85 (husband or relatives of the husband subjecting married woman to cruelty) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, along with relevant provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act against Samarth Singh and his mother. Samarth Singh, who had been absconding for ten days after an FIR was registered against him and his mother following Twisha's death by hanging, was arrested on Friday evening after he reached the Jabalpur district court premises to surrender.

Meanwhile, a 24-year-old woman, Deepika Nagar, died on last Sunday, allegedly falling from the terrace of her three-storey matrimonial house in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar. Her family, however, has alleged that she was murdered by her in-laws over dowry demands and claimed it was neither a suicide nor an accident. Her husband, Hritik, and his father Manoj have already been arrested in the case.