Soon as the jaws, that had hit the floor over Neha Dhupia and Angad Bedi’s surprise wedding, snapped back into the place, the mean-spirited whispering started… Neha Dhupia had to be pregnant, the rumours ran. Else, why the need for this overnight wedding? One entertainment portal went so far as to claim that proof lay in the fact that Neha was spotted in loose clothes post her marriage. They pointed out that she has only been seen in saris, gowns and flowing dresses for a while now (Nevermind that Neha has always had a preference for loose clothes!)
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The whispers reached a level where none other than Neha’s father himself has had to clear the air. Pradip Dhupia spoke to a newspaper denying that his daughter was pregnant. “No no... there is no such thing at all. Since the two got married early, people are thinking otherwise. But there is no such thing. People will keep talking about things and spread rumours as per their wish.”
He even spoke about the reason behind why they had a quiet, intimate ceremony. “It was decided by both the families and the couple as they didn’t have much time because of their respective work commitments. We only got a day or two to make all the wedding arrangements after the date was finalized.”
Maybe the rumour-mongers will go back into the holes they had crawled out of, or maybe they won’t. On our part, we are furious that the probing has got so intrusive that a father has had to come out and clear the air on a matter so personal and intimate. Aren’t matters like marriage and even pregnancy strictly between the couple themselves? What right does society have to inquire into a matter that concerns only the couple and their family? What right does media have to confront a father with these rumours? Will the ‘shame’ over pregnancy ever cease to exist?
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