Breaking the Stereotype of the Indian Bride

Today I came across this video featuring a bride getting ready for her wedding:

The video of bride Amisha Bhardwaj dancing and singing along to Sia’s Cheap Thrills went viral. There’s even a BBC News article about it: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-40008879
Part of the reason it became so popular is because she looks super cute and it’s a great video but it’s also very different from what is expected of an Indian bride.

Indian brides are supposed to look shy and docile. I’ve been to many weddings where the bride is lead into the wedding venue and a relative quickly stage whispers “look down!”. She not supposed to be too animated when dancing at the reception, slow swaying (while looking down) is ok but the running man is not, and she’s supposed to cry when leaving her parents house. She’s definitely not supposed to be dancing around in hot pants in her wedding video! That’s why this video has broken the mold and why I love it so much.

It’s almost ten years since I got married and I walked in to the church with my head up and a beaming smile on my face. I had a similar expression on my face when we said goodbye to everyone at the end of the day.

These days modern Indian women refuse to think that they are being given to another family. Instead it’s seen as the fusing together of two families. Therefore there’s no need to howl like a banshee and hold onto the bannisters of the house you grew up in (this also happened at a few weddings I’ve been to!). It’s true that it’s a wedding is an emotional event and some things will never be the same because the bride and groom are beginning a new chapter of life. But it’s a celebration and should be a fun and happy occasion for everyone, including the bride!, not just her drunk uncles who are doing the running man on the dance floor!

MummyImperfect x