Source Made In Heaven

You are probably living under a rock if you are not aware of the much appreciated Amazon Prime web series, ‘Made in Heaven’. Helmed by Zoya Akhtar and team, the show has taken the audiences by a storm with its progressive showcase of modern Indian society whilst revolving around weddings. The show is a story of two buddies, Tara and Karan, who run a wedding planning company called 'Made in Heaven'. Each episode comes with a new wed-to-be couple and whose wedding is planned by Karan and Tara's wedding planning agency. With each episode, the show covers hard-hitting issues such as LGBT themes, class-divide, self-identity, power struggle, working women, dowry and so much more. The show is being immensely loved by the masses for its progressive content. And we couldn't agree more. 

We too binge-watched this series (we had to, after all, it is about weddings) and loved it for reasons more than one. Right from giving us an insight of wedding planning madness to flooding us with fashion inspo and forcing our minds to ponder upon a lot of critical issues—Made In Heaven did it all. But what we love the most about this series is how brilliantly it has also managed to break a lot of stereotypes that persist in our society pertaining to love and marriages.

1. Old age marriages are absolutely Okay!

In one of the episodes, Tara and Karan are hired to plan the wedding of Gayatri Mathur, a sixty-plus widow with Bijoy Chatterjee, a Bengali architect. Their lives were deprived of partners until they chanced upon each other at a funeral. Mutual liking for each other leads them to get married. But this decision doesn't go well with Gayatri's kids, who themselves are married, have kids to take care of and are leading respective lives away from their mother in other cities. Her kids refuse to accept her will to get married in her late sixties owing to the awkwardness and shame issues. It is only when Karan personally makes them understand how Gayatri will otherwise stay deprived of love for the rest of her life and die alone, that her kids willingly join their mother on her wedding day. 

The show emotionally encountered everyone with the reality that it is okay to find love, get married and have own life even in later years of life.

Source Made In Heaven

2. Let love be!

It is 2019; section 377 has been outlawed from the Indian constitution. Sadly, in the ground reality, the stigma pertaining to LGBTQ still persists. Made in Heaven showcased the same by having a homosexual protagonist who wasn't merely a bundle of stereotypes. Karan played a gay character; his life full of struggles, identity crisis, acceptance issues from family has been shown with utmost realism without any glossy curtains. However, amidst his havoc-like life, it is extremely endearing to watch his story of true love with Nawab Khan. 

The show has actually tried hard to normalize gay sex and pronounce love as an asset unbounded with gender. We are all hearts for it! Here's the link one of the most beautiful gay wedding we recently published on the blog.

Source Made In Heaven

3. It is fine to move out from a bad marriage

When Tara gets to know about her husband's extramarital affair with her best friend, reality hits her really hard. She tries her best to forgive her husband, sort up the mess and wishes to embrace parenthood with her husband. But when nothing seems to work and her husband still continues to have relationships with her girlfriend, Tara unabashedly walks out of the marriage (with gobs jewellery though).

Source Made In Heaven

4. Don't succumb to the Dowry pressure!

Oh, and how can we not talk of the moment when the bride calls of the wedding at the last moment and leaves the mandap as soon as she comes to know that her would-be-husband and his family asked for a whopping sum as dowry. The particular episode harshly depicts how even well-educated families have 'rates' set for their son's marriage that they expect the bride's family to pay so as to marry him.

Source Made In Heaven

5. Don't overspend just for the sake of societal pressure

Overspending for the wedding is another thing most Indians are guilty of! A wedding is undeniably a matter of celebration and deserves to be hosted with utmost pomp and show; but, only if the pocket allows. It is sheer foolishness to bog yourself down with hefty loans just for the sake of societal pressure.

An episode shows a bride being a big-time spendthrift for her dream wedding without realizing that her father has indebted himself to fulfil her daughter's wishes. In the same episode, we see how a peon working at Made In Heaven is ready to take a loan to marry off his daughter with show-shaa. That's when Karan and Tara come to his rescue and selflessly take the charge of planning his daughter's wedding. But they also make him understand and send out a strong message that it is a stupidity to burden oneself with debt to host a decent wedding. 

Source Made in Heaven

What other wedding-related stereotypes do you think must be quashed sooner than later? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Medha Chawla

Author, WeddingBazaar

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