Band, bajaa, reverse baraat: The dads turning divorce into a homecoming

Mohua DasTNN
Apr 18, 2026 | 18:29 IST
Sakshi Gupta from Ranchi. Her walk from her in-laws’ home to the vehicle to carry her back was short, but the message travelled far

If there is one thing these fathers seem to agree on, it is that stigma thrives in silence. So, they decided to borrow from the visual language of a wedding — the procession, band-baaja, and public spectacle — and deploy it at the other end of the marital journey

The baraat is perhaps India’s most recognisable piece of wedding shenanigans — a loud, sweaty, and celebratory party — to announce that a daughter is leaving. The question nobody asked — until now — was why we never threw one for her coming back.

Earlier this month, a former judge stood waiting for his daughter outside a family court in Meerut with a small crowd, all in matching black T-shirts that read, ‘I Love My Daughter. My Heart, My Soul.’ The daughter, Pranita, wore one too: ‘My Family, My Life.’ It began, as most Indian wedding stories do, with the baraat. Because it was exactly that — garlands, mithai, and a dhol player on standby — only heading the other way.
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