Mass weddings

The articles “The high cost of some cheap weddings” (May 26) and “Seeing us, others will follow” (May 27) point to the social implications of the severe agrarian crisis in Maharashtra. The behaviour of politicians at Divthana mass weddings reflects the cosmetic nature of their rhetoric. The story of Divthana is indicative of a progressive and responsive community which has taken bold steps.

Saveetha Meganathan,

Pune

The articles bring out the plight of people whose lives have been shattered by the agrarian crisis. The mass, cheap-cost weddings bear testimony to their prolonged anguish and privation, and prove that necessity is the mother of invention. Innovative ideas such as mass weddings are products of the unending misery of the villagers.

The mass weddings at Divthana and Nandura present the irony of a country where the callous rich conduct high-powered theme weddings, putting up huge structures such as the Taj Mahal only to pull them down in two days.

Arjun R. Shankar,

Thiruvananthapuram

Adversity brings out the best in people. This has been aptly proved by the villagers of Divthana and Nandura. We can take a cue from the humble community and act on our own, instead of waiting for someone to take initiatives.

Deepa Nagaraj,

Hyderabad

P. Sainath has done well to bring the little-known mass weddings in Maharashtra to light. I hope the Divthana and Nandura examples will open the eyes of our caste leaders, religious heads and politicians. People should learn a lesson or two from the weddings and resolve to cut down the expenditure on food, rituals and costly marriage halls.

S.A. Srinivasa Sarma,

Hyderabad