Two brothers marriages same bride: Recently a case of a unique marriage has come to light, where two real brothers got married to the same woman. This is the case of Shillai village in Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh. Here, two brothers- Pradeep and Kapil, associated with Hatti tribe, married a woman named Sunita Chauhan under the traditional partner. The wedding took place in the presence of traditional music, dance and hundreds of guests for three days. This unique marriage has attracted the attention of the country towards the polynomial tradition.
What is polymorphic practice?
The polynomial system is a social tradition, in which a woman marries more than one men, especially brothers. In the Hatti tribe it is called pair -dara or jajra system. This tradition began with the aim of preventing the division of land and maintaining family unity. This practice is seen in the Shillai and Kinnaur regions of Himachal Pradesh in Jaunsar-Bawar region of Uttarakhand.
Why this unique marriage was done?
Pradeep is a government employee, while Kapil works abroad. The two brothers married the same woman and had the consent of all three. On this matter, Kapil told that he did this marriage to keep the tradition alive. At the same time, Pradeep said that we are proud of our tradition and we have publicly followed it. Kapil says that we will give full support and love to our wife as a joint family. Talking about the unique marriage, the bride Sunita also said that she took this decision on her own will and she was already aware of this practice.
How is the pair married?
The bride’s procession comes to the groom’s village at the pair. A special ritual is played at home, in which priests recite mantras in local language and spray holy water. The wedding ends with jaggery offering and taking blessings from Kuldevata.
Is this legal?
The pairing system is recognized in the revenue laws of Himachal Pradesh. The Hatti community has also got the status of Scheduled Tribes in 2022. The Himachal High Court has also recognized this practice under the ‘Parsi Law’. However, this practice is not considered valid in other parts of the country.
The circulation is slowly decreasing
According to the Central Hatti Committee, the practice of this practice is now decreasing due to literacy, urbanization and changing social perspective. Even today, such marriages are done secretly in many places. Even though the polynomial system is considered unusual in today’s time, it has been an important part of Himachal’s cultural diversity and traditional thinking. This marriage of Shillai village once again reminds how unique and diverse traditions in India.
