Girl from Jaipur goes against family and society to get her widowed mother married

Sanhita with Geeta and Mukesh. Source Twitter/The Hindustan Times.

1n 2018, we would love to call ourselves 'liberals' and 'open-minded' but let's face it, things are actually going pretty much downhill. Be it rapes, domestic violence or love jihad, we seem to be regressing rather than moving anywhere ahead. But once in a while, a story gives us hope.

This is one such story.

In a sign of the changing times, Sanhita Agarwal of Jaipur has got her widowed mother, Geeta remarried, despite opposition from her immediate family and society.

Sahita's father and Geeta's husband Mukesh Gupta had died of cardiac arrest in May, 2016. Geeta, a school teacher by profession,went into depression, which worsened when Sanhita moved to Gurgaon last March, for work.

"I used to curse myself for leaving my mother behind. I visited her over the weekends so that she could be happy at least for two nights but still felt selfish for choosing my career over her," Sanhita said. (Hindustan Times)

In August 2017, Sanhita decided to do find a partner for her 53-year-old mother. "Everyone needs a partner in life - you cannot share everything with your children. Without my mother's consent, I created her profile on a matrimonial site and put my mobile number there," Sanhita said.Sanhita told her mother what she was up to, in September. Of course Geeta was apprehensive, and the extended family was horrified with the idea.

Representational image.Everyone needs a partner in life - you cannot share everything with your children.

I was mad at her for the idea," said Geeta. "In our conservative families, widow remarriage is outrageous."

In October, KG Gupta, a 55-year-old revenue inspector from Banswara , contacted Sanhita on the matrimonial site. Gupta had lost his wife to cancer in 2010 and had been suggested remarriage. The father of two sons felt like the best match for Geeta.

In November, Geeta was advised a hysterectomy. When he learned about the surgery, Gupta came to Jaipur, and was by her side for three days. This made Geeta reconsider the idea of marriage, and she decided to give it a shot.

The fact that her own daughter wanted her mother to get married made the decision easier probably. Often, widows tend to consider the impact of a remarriage on their children. But the fact that Geeta had her own daughter playing matchmaker have made things so much better.

Sanhita on the other hand just wants her mother to be happy, and believes that she looks pretty and glowing again.