Marital Consent: What Happens When Consent is Assumed

<p>At eighteen Arti is told she is getting married. She is not asked.</p><p>In a small Bihari village where rituals matter more than choice she steps into a haveli draped in lights laughter and customs she barely understands. To the world outside she is a beautiful bride. To herself she is a girl learning to smile through discomfort to bow where silence is expected.</p><p>Her husband Guddan is not cruel &mdash; but he carries the weight of a culture where marriage is ownership not partnership. Every night draws Arti deeper into a world where her duty is assumed her voice subdued. Watching her closely is a caged Mynah fluttering falling silent breaking free only to return.</p><p>Is consent truly possible in a marriage where even the wedding itself was never her choice?<br/>And is silence agreement &mdash; or merely survival?</p><p><i>Marital Consent is a haunting tale of duty desire and the blurred line between acceptance and captivity.</i></p>