A wedding is probably the biggest day of your life. The day when you solemnize your love for ‘the one’ and take vows for a happy ever after. But Indian society often fails to wholeheartedly support those who break gender stereotypes.
Even after the government passed the Transgender Persons (Protection) Bill 2019 on August 5, people who identify themselves as transgenders still struggle to utilise their basic rights. Rights as basic as marrying the person they love.
But setting a great example for the society is this West Bengal based couple who decided to marry the love of their life, fighting against all odds.
Bride Tista Das (38) who was originally born as Susanto and groom Dipan Chakravarthy (40), born as Dipannita tied the knot amidst all the chanting and prayers in a traditional Bengali ceremony in the presence of family and friends.
Tista who is a popular face of the transgender community in Kolkata and has been working as an actor met Dipan hailing from Assam Lumding a few years ago. Over the years, the two struck a chord and decided to announce their decision to tie the knot in April.
An Indian transgender couple have tied the knot in a traditional Bengali ceremony, in what is believed to be the state's first "rainbow wedding"
📷 @Dibyangshushttps://t.co/PexILvGooX pic.twitter.com/fINgY1PFUt— AFP news agency (@AFP) August 7, 2019
The couple who defied the stereotypical norms of the society is believed to be the first wedded transgender couple in West Bengal.
Tista, who underwent a sex reassignment surgery (SRS) 15 years ago and is also Bengal’s first transsexual woman with a voter ID card, looked ravishing in a red Banarasi saree. While the groom, Dipan, donned the dhoti kurta, ready to take Tista as his wife.
VIDEO: Indian transgender couple, who both underwent sex re-assignment, have tied the knot in a traditional Bengali ceremony.
"It's a bond of love. It's a bond of liberty also," says bride Tista Das pic.twitter.com/GXUOlbbMX9
— AFP news agency (@AFP) August 8, 2019
Although Dipan’s family stayed away from the event, Tista’s mother was present at the wedding to bless the newlyweds.
Since Das is a public figure who has been making numerous public appearances challenging gender stereotypes and prejudices, the wedding was attended by numerous members of the transgender community from Kolkata.
'Rainbow Wedding': Indian Transgender Couple Marry in Emotional Ceremony https://t.co/qRCumSCejT pic.twitter.com/6R79Tt2zID
— Katia Zevelekakis (@katiazev) August 7, 2019
Indian transgender couple tie knot in landmark 'rainbow wedding'. Bride and groom, who both underwent sex reassignment, comes as lower house of parliament voted to enshrine transgender rights. pic.twitter.com/csOQbKRN61
— Imtiaz Mahmood (@ImtiazMadmood) August 8, 2019
“I always believed love has no gender and Dipan and I have proved it. We are feeling awesome actually. We are out of the gender box and we love to be an exception and we think this is a strong bond between us. It’s a bond of love. It’s a bond of liberty also. And this is the solidarity of our souls,” Tista said.
Love-struck Dipan added, “I am extremely lucky to have Tista as my wife. This is the best day of my life.”
Now, this is the kind of love story we should be reading to the future generations. The one that is not restricted by gender or society, but instead bound by pure love!