Refusal To Take Pre-Wedding Bath Finally Exposed Kerala Bride Who Married 12+ Men In 10 Years

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'Nahanam', a key Hindu wedding ritual in Kerala symbolising purification, was skipped by Reshma, who insisted on going straight to a beauty parlour before the ceremony
A 30-year-old man in Thiruvananthapuram recently uncovered an elaborate marriage fraud involving a woman named Reshma, thanks to a suspicious refusal to participate in a pre-wedding bathing ritual.
This ritual, known as 'Nahanam', is a significant part of Hindu wedding traditions in Kerala, symbolising purification before marriage.
The groom, Aneesh and Reshma had connected through a matrimonial site and, after extensive conversations, had set a wedding date. However, on the day of the wedding, Reshma refused to partake in the Nahanam ritual and insisted on going directly to a beauty parlour. This refusal raised suspicions, leading to a search of her belongings, which revealed documents of her previous marriages.
Upon investigation, it was discovered that Reshma, a resident of Udayamperoor in Ernakulam, had been involved in a decade-long scam, marrying over a dozen men, and absconding with jewellery and other valuables each time.
Reshma's pattern involved meeting men through matrimonial sites, weaving convincing tales, and then disappearing post-marriage with their possessions. The police, informed by Aneesh, confirmed that she had a two-year-old child.
In the latest case, Reshma introduced a woman as her mother. The groom, Aneesh, had posted a marriage advertisement in a matrimony group. Reshma met Aneesh and claimed she was adopted by her foster mother, who was not interested in her marriage. Aneesh believed her story and agreed to marry her.
A day before the wedding, Aneesh arranged for Reshma to stay at his friend's house, who was a member of another village panchayat. On the wedding day, Reshma refused to bathe and said she would go straight to the beauty parlour. This made Aneesh's friend suspicious of her.
The wedding and banquet preparations were all in place, but a search of Reshma's bag uncovered documents related to her previous marriages.
Acting on a complaint by Aneesh, a team led by Kattakada DySP N. Shibu, SHO V.S. Ajeesh, and SI Venu made a dramatic entry into the marriage hall and arrested Reshma. During interrogation, Reshma confessed that she had married another man just 45 days ago and was planning to marry yet another man from Thiruvananthapuram next month.
Despite her claims of seeking true love, police suspect the list of her marriages may be more extensive, though victims are reluctant to come forward due to embarrassment.
Reshma's history of deception began in 2014 when she eloped with a man from Ernakulam during her degree studies, living with him until 2017. She subsequently married four more times by 2022 and had a child in 2023. Remarkably, she managed to marry twice within ten days in 2025.
First Published:
June 11, 2025, 12:17 IST