The issue of caste is one that is firmly embedded in Indian society. After the Intolerance to Love episode was aired, many wrote in saying they supported inter-caste and inter-faith marriages. On the ground, however, families continue to persecute couples in love, and honour killings are still taking place across the country. The bad news notwithstanding, we came across a ray of hope: a tweet by @masala_chaai assured us that change is possible.
Recently, we got in touch with Vijay Soni, who had tweeted this. We enquired if his friend had indeed married the girl of his choice and the response was heart-warming. Read the story here in Vijay’s own words.
“My friends Sameer and Nayana (names changed) have been together since their school days. However, Sameer’s parents were not okay with the idea of their marriage because Nayana belongs to a lower subcaste than theirs. In spite of a meeting being arranged between both families, nothing changed. A year and a half passed in this way and by then, Sameer’s family had started showing signs of change.
It was also at this time that the Intolerance to Love episode was aired. Sameer told us that his parents’ behaviour had drastically changed after watching it. A week after that, we downloaded the episode and invited both the families to watch it together. For one-and-a-half hour, the room was completely silent. All of us including Nayana were very tense. However, when the episode got over, Sameer’s mom publicly accepted her as part of their family. I still remember that day; we were all in tears.
Today, Sameer and Nayana are happily married and live in Mumbai with Sameer’s parents. While their efforts paved way for their marriage, Satyamev Jayate was definitely an icebreaker. Thank you for connecting with me. After posting that tweet, I had no idea I’d get to write this lovely story!”