Member-only story
The Hidden Cost of Marriage: How Dowries Harm Women
How dowry systems are fueling a particular type of epidemic in India
“So, who pays the dowry?”
It’s different depending on the country or culture, but the dowry system in India refers to the durable goods, cash, and real or movable property that the bride’s family gives to the groom, his parents, and his relatives as a condition of the marriage.
The dowry system in India is kind of creating some problems, or has systemically created problems for women, especially under such a harsh patriarchal culture that is India.
In 1961, the Dowry Prohibition Act was passed in India. This was supposedly to prohibit the giving or receiving of a dowry in exchange for a marriage or connection with the marriage. However, culturally speaking, dowries are still being paid.
Going back to the article in the New Yorker, there have been different acts that have been passed to supposedly help Indian women, but these women are still facing all kinds of status issues, or they see that things have not progressed that much.
In 2022, India ranked 135th out of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report.
