I Paid A Huge Price For Bringing In Lesser Dowry
I thought we were in love until I realised that things were beautiful before marriage. He used to spend time with me and promised to fulfil my wishes. I gravitated towards him due to his traits. But, after my marriage, he and his family revealed their real sides.
We tied the knot in April 2019. It was a love-arranged marriage. Soon after that, I got a reality check.
My inlaws started passing nasty jeers on me for not bringing enough dowry with me to fulfil their greed.Sometimes they used to threaten me, but I expected my husband to take a stand for me, which he never did. In fact, he stood against me and abused me for the same reason.
Seeing him behave that way was heartbreaking because the person I knew, with whom I fell in love, was never like the one he became. Expecting such behaviour from a well-educated family was absolutely unbelievable. It's a misconception that such behaviours can only be seen in illiterate families.
The truth is that a "degree is just a piece of paper; real education is seen in behaviour."
I was repenting my decision to blindly trust a guy who pretended to be understanding before our marriage. But I was somehow surviving the marriage. I thought things would get back to normal once we became parents. But nothing like that happened! I gave birth to a girl child, which triggered my inlaws to such an extent that they provoked my husband against me.
The atmosphere became worse; he started abusing me and fighting with me over petty things.
After my delivery, I stayed at my parents' house. Three months passed, but none of them turned up to see my daughter's face, not even my husband. Upon asking the reason, they said, "Shaadi aur bacche toh dobara ho jate hai!" I was shattered and couldn't take it any longer; I ended up being the victim of postpartum depression. He never tried to understand, console, or support me, even after knowing his parents were wrong.
I filed an FIR against my inlaws and husband for mentally harassing me and not accepting my daughter.My self-respect is the most precious thing to me, and I can never keep it at stake. I know that I never made a mistake and always tried my best; the problem was at their end, which ruined everything. Society has always been the last thing on my mind, so I've never looked back on the time I've squandered in life.
Though I was the victim of domestic violence, I never let that lessen my zeal. After getting divorced, I became more determined to earn a living and provide a better life for my daughter. I worked overtime and some days worked night shifts so that I could meet my daughter's every need, and she never felt her father's absence in her life. My daughter is my strength; she is the only one who helped me overcome depression.
It is not easy to move on from a horrible past, especially the one where you loved a guy and he never valued your love.I am proud of my decision because my daughter would have been a victim of the same if I had not taken such a drastic step. My message to all women is: never be a victim of domestic violence. Always fight for what is right, because if you don't, who will? Ladies, our self-respect is the most precious piece of jewellery we should never keep at stake.