Latest news with #Marriage
New Indian Express
12 hours ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Activist urges scholarship for child marriage survivor in Karnataka
BENGALURU: Child-rights activist Nagasimha G Rao has written to Home Minister, urging the State Government to honour a minor girl from Reddihalli Gollarahatti in Challakere taluk, Chitradurga district, who resisted child marriage. Rao requested the government to formally acknowledge her bravery and provide financial aid or scholarships to support her future. In his letter on Monday, Rao demanded immediate legal action against those involved in organising the marriage, recognition of the girl as a child in need of care and protection, and long-term support for her education, mental health and rehabilitation. Rao urged the state to treat her as a 'child in need of care and protection' under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, and provide counselling, rehabilitation, and social reintegration support through the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and District Child Protection Unit. In addition to that, the activist called for awareness campaigns in rural areas, schools, and gram panchayats about the consequences of child marriage. He recommended that helpline numbers like 1098 be prominently displayed in public spaces and that Child Marriage Prohibition Officers be appointed and monitored across districts.
Indian Express
25-05-2025
- Indian Express
South Dinajpur police book decorators, caterers, and priests in child marriage case
The South Dinajpur police in West Bengal have booked decorators, caterers, priests, videographers, and wedding hall staff for allegedly participating in a child marriage that was foiled at the last moment on May 10. The local police and the members of Shakti Vahini NGO rescued the victim from the wedding venue. 'The minor girl, 17, was reportedly being compelled to marry a 25-year-old man. While the timely intervention prevented the solemnization of the marriage, a comprehensive list of attendees who were present that day and actively participated in the arrangements has also been drawn up,' said a senior police officer. Reacting to the First Information Report (FIR), a representative of the local Shakti Vahini stated, 'It is extremely critical to take strict action against people involved in the marriage to raise accountability.' 'The investigation into the matter is underway, and the girl has been sent to a home for counselling. If the report of the child protection officer turns out to be positive, then the girl will be reunited with her family,' said Mijanur Rahaman, a member of the Shakti Vahini and the complainant in the case. Bijin Krishna, District Magistrate, South Dinajpur, stated, 'Child marriage is quite prevalent in the district. The complaints we receive represent only about one-tenth of the actual number of child marriages taking place. By analysing teenage pregnancy data, we gain insights into vulnerable pockets and blocks. Ending child marriage is no small task, but many small actions can create significant change.' He also informed that the district administration has developed a comprehensive database of all teenage girls across the district from the panchayat level to help prevent child marriages. Rishi Kant, a member of the Shakti Vahini, said, 'Recently, the Supreme Court, in its judgment on child marriage, directed the appointment of Child Marriage Prevention Officers to reach out to rural areas and create a conducive environment for preventing child marriage. It is important to spread the message that child marriage is a crime and anyone and everyone found involved in it will be prosecuted. 'The West Bengal government has mandated that in child marriage incidents, FIRs must be filed and reach the DGP's office within 24 hours. As per the National Family Health Report and NCRB data, Bengal is one of the worst states in terms of child marriage. We are seeing a series of awareness programs happening, and now, slowly, the fear of the law is emerging among people.' Meanwhile, district officials said they have set a goal to make South Dinajpur a child marriage-free district by 2030.
Channel 4
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Channel 4
Keeley Hawes and Paapa Essiedu to lead new drama 'Falling' written by Jack Thorne
Filming has commenced in Wales and Bristol on major new Channel 4 drama, Falling, produced by The Forge Entertainment, a Banijay UK company (National Treasure, The Buccaneers, Marriage). Keeley Hawes (Scoop, Miss Austen) will star as Anna, a devoted nun, and Paapa Essiedu (Black Mirror, The Lazarus Project) as David, a Catholic priest, in BAFTA award-winning writer Jack Thorne's (Adolescence, Help) first ever love story. Both are deeply committed to their work in the church and in their community. Neither are expected to fall in love. But when they do, both are forced to wrestle with what it means for them, their vows, and their relationship with God. Falling is a witty, moving, contemporary romantic drama that is as honest as it is full of heart. Also joining the cast of Falling are Rakie Ayola (The Pact, Kaos), Jason Watkins (Coma, The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies), Niamh Cusack (The Virtues, Heartbeat), Adrian Scarborough (Gavin and Stacey, The Chelsea Detective), David Dawson (My Policeman, The Last Kingdom), Susan Brown (Mr Bates vs The Post Office, It's A Sin), Sandra Voe (Howards End, Vera Drake) and introducing TV newcomers, Holly Rhys and Shayde Sinclair. Keeley Hawes says: 'I'm thrilled to be taking on the role of Anna and so looking forward to working alongside the brilliant Paapa Essiedu to bring Jack Thorne's beautiful scripts to life.' Paapa Essiedu says: 'Falling is a story that has Jack Thorne's singular talent of mining the sublime out of the ordinary running all the way through. I can't wait to work with Keeley, Peter and the rest of the team to bring this world to life.' Jack Thorne says: 'I never thought I'd write a love story, but I am very excited to be making one with the brilliant Peter Hoar. We feel so lucky we have persuaded the mighty (and lovely) Keeley Hawes, the brilliant (and also lovely) Paapa Essiedu and the most amazing company of (lovely) actors to come make this with us, The Forge and Channel 4.' Gwawr Lloyd, Commissioning Editor, Drama adds: 'The combination of Keeley Hawes and Paapa Essiedu, alongside Jack Thorne's incredible scripts and Peter Hoar's direction means this will be the most extraordinary show. We are so excited to bring this unique and compelling love story to Channel 4.' A 6x60' drama from The Forge, Falling is executive produced by George Ormond, George Faber and Jack Thorne. Joe Donaldson (Cobra, Ripper Street, Peaky Blinders) is the producer and Peter Hoar (It's A Sin, The Last of Us, Umbrella Academy) will direct. Falling has been commissioned for Channel 4 by Ollie Madden, Director of Film4 and Channel 4 Drama and Gwawr Lloyd, Commissioning Editor, Drama. Falling will be distributed internationally by Banijay Rights. Transmission details will be announced in due course. *ENDS* Notes to Editors About The Forge: The Forge, a Banijay UK company, is a UK based drama production company with an unrivalled reputation for high quality, ambitious and influential TV drama, working in collaboration with the UK's leading creative talent. The company has produced a wide range of award-winning dramas including Jack Thorne's 'National Treasure' starring Robbie Coltrane and Julie Walters, 'Help' starring Jodie Comer and Stephen Graham, David Hare's 'Collateral' and 'Roadkill', starring Carey Mulligan and Hugh Laurie respectively and Anya Reiss's 'Becoming Elizabeth' for Starz in the US. Most recently, The Forge have produced major 8-part series 'The Buccaneers' created and written by Katherine Jakeways for Apple TV+,; 4-part Disney+ series 'Shardlake' by Stephen Butchard, 'Generation Z', a six-part series and the first original TV project from Ben Wheatley for Channel 4 and 'Just Act Normal', a youth-skewing darkly comic series from award-winning writer Janice Okoh for BBC Three/BBC iPlayer. The Forge currently has multiple, high profile new titles for both linear and SVOD platforms in production, including season 2 of 'The Buccaneers' for Apple TV+ and a brand-new adaptation of 'A Woman of Substance' for Channel 4, written by Katherine Jakeways and co-written by Roanne Bardsley.
Washington Post
20-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
What's a marriage sabbatical, and why are there so many books about it?
Love? Hah! For much of recorded history, marriage was rooted in wealth, social standing and livestock. 'Marriage was too vital an economic and political institution to be entered into solely on the basis of something as irrational as love,' Stephanie Coontz wrote in her 2005 book, 'Marriage, a History.' Love is one thing and marriage, the long and happy kind, certainly another. 'When two people are under the influence of the most violent, most insane, most delusive, and most transient of passions, they are required to swear that they will remain in that excited, abnormal, and exhausting condition continuously until death do them part,' George Bernard Shaw wrote in the preface of his 1908 play, 'Getting Married,' which advocates for democratizing divorce laws.
New York Times
05-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
‘White Lotus' Has an Old-School View of Relationships
The hotly anticipated final episode of the third season of HBO's hit 'White Lotus' airs Sunday. The show has earned a reputation for revealing the sordid emotional lives of the 1 percent, the types who regularly vacation at five-star-resorts like the White Lotus on fabulous Thai islands. No matter who on the lavish grounds is sacrificed tomorrow night for our entertainment, I predict that if all of the couples literally survive, their relationships will probably survive, too. And the traumatic events they endure will only bring them closer, no matter how much they've previously lied to each other and themselves. In many ways, married couples and nuclear families are the two pillars of society that the show's director and creator, Mike White, doesn't want to blow up. In spite of the more provocative, sexually transgressive plotlines Mr. White has explored — this season's Ratliff brothers' incestuous three-way comes to mind — ultimately, the show has its own old-school view of marriage: 'Til death do us part. If the pop cultural vogue in relationships emphasizes radical honesty, and talking through feelings in a therapeutic environment, in all three seasons of the show, marriage is about loyalty, strategic deception, and keeping up appearances. This is true even as the characters individually dabble in new age wellness practices like meditation that are meant to get at deeper truths and self-knowledge. The show has a satisfying honesty about the role money plays in marital cohesion, even as we like to pretend that modern marriage is built on love, fidelity and compatibility. As the historian Stephanie Coontz explained in her sweeping 2005 book 'Marriage, a History: How Love Conquered Marriage,' for millennia, marriage for the upper crust was not about affection, it was a financial and political arrangement meant to consolidate power. 'The marriages of the rich and famous in the ancient and medieval worlds can be told as political thrillers, corporate mergers, military epics and occasionally even murder mysteries.' Sounds a lot like this TV show. In the first season, which takes place in Hawaii, Nicole and Mark Mossbacher are the best example of this kind of relationship. Mark has in the past been unfaithful to Nicole, who is a top executive at a tech company, and he's definitely conflicted about the fact that she is far more successful than he is. When another guest, the confused newlywed Rachel, learns that Mark has been married for 22 years, she asks him, 'What's your guys secret, how do you guys keep the spark alive?' and he responds: 'The spark? Oh that's not alive. That died. I mean, love may be alive. But the spark? Pfft.' The Mossbachers continue to squabble until they are violently robbed, and Mark physically defends Nicole. The end of the series shows them to be emotionally closer than before they arrived at the resort; Mark is fetching Nicole fresh kiwi at breakfast and Nicole is beaming at him. Rachel, who had previously been upset to discover that she is a 'trophy wife,' decides to stay with her incredibly rich and petulant new husband Shane. But the 'White Lotus' theory of relationships is perhaps most clearly expressed by Daphne Sullivan, one of the main characters in Season 2. She is a beautiful, contented mother of two married to a cocky finance guy named Cameron. They traveled to Italy with Ethan, Cameron's old college roommate who just sold his start-up for a lot of money, and Harper, Ethan's sharp-tongued lawyer wife, who doesn't come from wealth and is suspicious of the entire enterprise. In the first episodes, Daphne appears to be floating happily on her good fortune. But as the season progresses, we see slight cracks in her serene expression, making it clear that she knows that her husband is unfaithful (all credit goes to the actress, Meghann Fahy, who perfectly telegraphs Daphne's discomfort, and quick calculation, without saying a word). Instead of raging at Cameron, she spends his money on a side trip to an extravagant villa, and it's suggested that she cheats on him right back. 'We never really know what goes on in people's minds, or what they do, right? You spend every second with somebody, and there's still this part that's a mystery,' Daphne says to her husband's friend Ethan, when he reveals that Harper might have had a dalliance with Cameron. 'You don't have to know everything to love someone. A little mystery? It's kinda sexy,' Daphne tells Ethan, and adds, 'I think you just — you just — do whatever you have to do not to feel like a victim of life.' After this speech, Daphne leads Ethan, down a beach into a cove, and though we don't see what happens, their interaction eventually leads to relationship happiness for both Cameron and Daphne and Ethan and Harper. For Ethan and Harper, cheating, or the mere idea of cheating, reinvigorates their previously sexless marriage. In the final scene of the season, at the airport, both couples are blissful and entwined. In the current season, there is a lot of frank discussion of the role of money in relationships, as there are many older, balding wealthy men who are at the White Lotus with their young, hot girlfriends. Victoria Ratliff (Parker Posey), a booze-and-pills addled, married Southern lady, accosts one of these girlfriends at a party. 'You're such a darling girl. You're young. You're beautiful. Why are you with this middle-aged weirdo? Does he have a lot of money?' Victoria asks. The girlfriend's face drops. 'You can't ask that,' she retorts. Victoria's response: 'Come to North Carolina. I could introduce you to some respectable men. They would eat you up.' What makes this scene so funny is not just Posey's sodden delivery, it's the fact that she doesn't understand that she's offering the same compromise — a rich man in exchange for a woman's youth and beauty — in a more 'respectable' package. What might change my prediction about couples staying together in the last episode? Loss of money and status. No one in previous seasons has had their place in the financial firmament threatened. If Victoria finally discovers that her husband, Timothy, is on the brink of losing everything because of his financial crimes, I don't know what she'd be capable of. As she admitted earlier in the season, if they lost everything, Victoria doesn't think she'd want to live. 'I just don't think at this age I'm meant to live an uncomfortable life. I don't have the will.' For Victoria, and many of the other couples on 'White Lotus,' it's not in sickness and in health, it's in sickness and in wealth. End Notes
