{"id":44585,"date":"2025-12-10T00:18:44","date_gmt":"2025-12-10T00:18:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=44585"},"modified":"2025-12-10T00:18:44","modified_gmt":"2025-12-10T00:18:44","slug":"c62vnlg6v6woat_mediumrssat_campaignrss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2025\/12\/10\/c62vnlg6v6woat_mediumrssat_campaignrss\/","title":{"rendered":"Indian couple trolled over skin colour after wedding video goes viral"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<div data-component=\"byline-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<div data-testid=\"byline-new\" class=\"sc-573fa0e8-0 bWRWzH\"><span data-testid=\"byline-new-contributors\" class=\"sc-573fa0e8-11 cOQNNv\"><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"sc-573fa0e8-7 kdBCdE\">Geeta Pandey<!-- -->,<\/span><span data-testid=\"byline-new-contributors-contributor-0-role-location\" class=\"sc-573fa0e8-8 eDNgSC\">BBC Correspondent<\/span><span class=\"sc-573fa0e8-9 keGieE\">and<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"sc-573fa0e8-7 kdBCdE\">Vishnukant Tiwari<!-- -->,<\/span><span data-testid=\"byline-new-contributors-contributor-1-role-location\" class=\"sc-573fa0e8-8 eDNgSC\">BBC Hindi<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure>\n<div data-component=\"image-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 gtLOOD\">\n<div data-testid=\"hero-image\" class=\"sc-5340b511-1 cMIbKV\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Russian-assets-deal-plan-and-Joe-the-GOAT.png?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 gUePlo hide-when-no-script\" aria-label=\"image unavailable\"\/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/bfc0\/live\/04e12e70-d4b9-11f0-8f8c-2f8fd3f6c520.jpg.webp 240w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/320\/cpsprodpb\/bfc0\/live\/04e12e70-d4b9-11f0-8f8c-2f8fd3f6c520.jpg.webp 320w,https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Indian-couple-trolled-over-skin-colour-after-wedding-video-goes.webp.webp 480w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/640\/cpsprodpb\/bfc0\/live\/04e12e70-d4b9-11f0-8f8c-2f8fd3f6c520.jpg.webp 640w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/800\/cpsprodpb\/bfc0\/live\/04e12e70-d4b9-11f0-8f8c-2f8fd3f6c520.jpg.webp 800w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/cpsprodpb\/bfc0\/live\/04e12e70-d4b9-11f0-8f8c-2f8fd3f6c520.jpg.webp 1024w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1536\/cpsprodpb\/bfc0\/live\/04e12e70-d4b9-11f0-8f8c-2f8fd3f6c520.jpg.webp 1536w\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Indian-couple-trolled-over-skin-colour-after-wedding-video-goes.webp.webp?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" loading=\"eager\" alt=\"Rishabh Rajput and Sonali Chouksey Rishabh Rajput and Sonali Chouksey at their wedding\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA\"\/><span class=\"sc-5340b511-2 jVqbAn\">Rishabh Rajput and Sonali Chouksey<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><figcaption class=\"sc-536eff7b-0 gnQokQ\">Rishabh Rajput and Sonali Chouksey were married last month<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Rishabh Rajput and Sonali Chouksey met in college 11 years ago, fell in love and married last month.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Photos and videos from their colourful wedding showed the happy couple from the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh performing rituals and posing in their finery.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">But when they shared their happiest moment on social media, the congratulatory messages came peppered with &#8220;jokes and memes&#8221; with trolls comparing and criticising the couple over the groom&#8217;s skin colour.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">In India, where obsession with fair skin colour is well documented and can sometimes even have tragic consequences, the groom faced intense online shaming and was called names for his &#8220;darker skin colour&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The trolls did not spare the bride either, with many suggesting she had married him &#8220;for his money&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;She must have had some compulsion,&#8221; one wrote. Another suggested she couldn&#8217;t be happy with a husband like that. Some labelled her a &#8220;gold-digger,&#8221; claiming she married him for wealth or a secure government job with perks. One comment suggested that Mr Rajput&#8217;s father must be &#8220;a government minister&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The couple, who married on 23 November, have since gone viral because of the trolling &#8211; and their response, as they addressed the criticism head-on. They have been sought out by local media and given scores of interviews in the past two weeks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;People were making jokes and memes and it felt very wrong,&#8221; Mr Rajput told BBC Hindi from his home in Jabalpur.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;It was our moment and we had waited for it so many years. It was supposed to be a happy moment, but when I saw people&#8217;s reactions, I was really shocked,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;In so many years that we have been together, no-one had ever told us that we were a mismatch because I have dark complexion while she is fairer,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure>\n<div data-component=\"image-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 gXrNRM\">\n<div data-testid=\"image\" class=\"sc-5340b511-1 cMIbKV\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Russian-assets-deal-plan-and-Joe-the-GOAT.png?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 gUePlo hide-when-no-script\" aria-label=\"image unavailable\"\/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/d540\/live\/8e0afaf0-d428-11f0-93c0-4fd4a05b7c18.jpg.webp 240w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/320\/cpsprodpb\/d540\/live\/8e0afaf0-d428-11f0-93c0-4fd4a05b7c18.jpg.webp 320w,https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1765325924_720_Indian-couple-trolled-over-skin-colour-after-wedding-video-goes.webp.webp 480w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/640\/cpsprodpb\/d540\/live\/8e0afaf0-d428-11f0-93c0-4fd4a05b7c18.jpg.webp 640w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/800\/cpsprodpb\/d540\/live\/8e0afaf0-d428-11f0-93c0-4fd4a05b7c18.jpg.webp 800w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/cpsprodpb\/d540\/live\/8e0afaf0-d428-11f0-93c0-4fd4a05b7c18.jpg.webp 1024w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1536\/cpsprodpb\/d540\/live\/8e0afaf0-d428-11f0-93c0-4fd4a05b7c18.jpg.webp 1536w\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1765325924_720_Indian-couple-trolled-over-skin-colour-after-wedding-video-goes.webp.webp?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"BBC Hindi Sonali Chouksey and Rishabh Rajput after their wedding\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA\"\/><span class=\"sc-5340b511-2 jVqbAn\">BBC Hindi<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><figcaption class=\"sc-536eff7b-0 gnQokQ\">Sonali Chouksey and Rishabh Rajput met in college in 2014 and fell in love<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The nasty comments left the couple &#8211; who both work in private companies &#8211; reeling.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Ms Chouksey admitted that such comments &#8220;bothered&#8221; her. &#8220;You think &#8211; is this is how people are perceiving us? When they say nasty things about him or call me a gold-digger, it irritates me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">In a post on Instagram, Mr Rajput addressed the trolls: &#8220;Sorry to disappoint you. I&#8217;m not a government employee, but I work hard for my family and want to give them a good, dignified life.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">He added that Sonali fell in love with him when he had nothing. &#8220;From college till today, she has stood with me through every good and bad moment. People&#8217;s negative opinions mean nothing to me,&#8221; he wrote.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Mr Rajput also addressed the issue of colourism in the comments, saying he had faced colour discrimination his whole life.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;I know very well that I have a dark complexion. But in my wife&#8217;s eyes, I am trying to be the best husband I can be, and that is what matters the most. There is no need to speak wrongly about my family.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Mr Rajput said he pushed back when the trolls began commenting on one of the photos that also had his mother and his and his wife&#8217;s sisters.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;I did not like the fact that they targeted my family. I want to tell them, you are a nobody. And you have no right to target &#8211; or troll &#8211; anyone&#8217;s family,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The couple, together since meeting in a 2014 college zoology class, say outsiders shouldn&#8217;t judge their lives.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;Our relationship began a year later and we knew from then that one day we would be married. Those who are commenting on our relationship by looking at a 30-second video don&#8217;t know that it captures 11 years of hard work that we have put into it,&#8221; says Mr Rajput.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;Sonali had always manifested that when we get married, our entire village should witness it. But today, it seems like the whole world is watching it,&#8221; he says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">That attention, the couple agree, feels good in a way. But the comments, Ms Chouksey adds, are hurting their families. &#8220;For people, it may be just something they watch on social media, but it&#8217;s our life. And it can destroy someone&#8217;s family.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The couple have also addressed colourism in several of their interviews.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;We live in India where people from different regions have different skin colour. And fair skin doesn&#8217;t necessarily make someone a good person. So, how can we judge someone on the basis of their skin colour?&#8221; asks Ms Chouksey.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Mr Rajput says &#8220;about 70-80% people in India have darker skin tones, but the Indian mentality is that fairer is better. It&#8217;s time to change that notion&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">And for those who say the couple are a mismatch, he has a question: &#8220;When you look at us, do we look even remotely unhappy to you? We don&#8217;t. Because we have what most people don&#8217;t have. I have her and she has me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Indian #couple #trolled #skin #colour #wedding #video #viral<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Geeta Pandey,BBC Correspondentand Vishnukant Tiwari,BBC Hindi Rishabh Rajput and Sonali Chouksey Rishabh Rajput and Sonali Chouksey were married last month&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":44586,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44585"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44585\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44587,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44585\/revisions\/44587"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44586"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}