The two brothers from the Shillai village in Himachal’s Sirmaur district married the same woman in a rare polyandrous ceremony, locally known as ‘Jodidara’. Weeks after a bride married two grooms in a rare ‘Hatti’ traditional marriage in Himachal Pradesh, the two brothers have opened up on the ceremony and the public criticism on social media.
The two brothers- Pradeep and Kapil Negi, from the Hatti tribe of Himachal, said that the ‘Jodidar Pratha’ has been going on for generations and that the tradition was not imposed upon them. “This Jodidar Pratha has been going on for generations. It is not that we married under the tradition for the first time. It has been practised in the past and continues to be practised at present,” Pradeep Negi said in a video, posted on Facebook.
His brother, Kapil Negi, said that the three married with their consent and it was their mutual decision. “In other states, there are traditions that are imposed on the people. But we don’t have any such tradition. We are not forced to follow the tradition. We got married with our consent. It was our mutual decision,” Kapil said.
The two brothers from the Shillai village in Himachal’s Sirmaur district married the same woman in a rare polyandrous ceremony, locally known as ‘Jodidara’. The rare marriage which began on July 12, not only drew hundreds of villagers, but was also the topic of widespread discussion on social media. Though polyandry is rare in Himachal, the Jodidara practice continues to be recognised under the state’s revenue laws. Meanwhile, the brothers said that the practice is not only restricted to Himachal, but continues to be practised in the Jaunsar-Bawar area of Uttarakhand.
Pradeep Negi, while speaking on the rare tradition, said that the brothers and the bride agreed to the marriage and it was not imposed upon them. “In this marriage, all the three of us agreed to it (marriage). Both families were ready for the marriage,” he said. He also said that the three have received abusive reactions to their photos and videos on social media, adding “we are happy with our lives.”
“Many people are abusing us on our photos and videos on social media. I want to tell them that, don’t think that you are abusing me. We are happy with our lives. We are promoting our tradition and culture,” Pradeep added. Pradeep also said that they come from a poor family. His brother, added, that they didn’t get married to become famous.
“We didn’t had any intention of making the (Facebook) page. We didn’t married with the intention of getting famous. The news went across India. We married in a normal way,” Kapil said. Adding to that, Pradeep said, “The sole purpose of this marriage was to remain together and continue to love each other. We pray that the love between the brothers continue,” he added.
