Bigamy, but husbands keep their virginity for their second wife (7 photos)

A curious community lives in the Indian state of Rajasthan, in the town of Derasar. Here polygamy is not only encouraged, but also imposed on everyone as a social norm.





This is a remote town, even 550 kilometers from the state capital Jaipur, so locals rarely venture into “civilization.” That's why time has stopped a little here. People wear traditional long wrap tops, luxurious scarves and elaborate jewelry. Even for Hindus, they are different in appearance from ordinary people. And the differences don't end with style.



A photograph of local sarees, which differ in patterns and borders.

For generations, local men here married twice, lived with two wives, but only had children with their second wife!

Superstition has reached its limit

Initially, people lived here according to the traditions of the Rajputs, who belong to the Kshatriya warrior caste. In Hinduism, kshatriyas actually practiced polygamy, but here this tradition was modified due to superstitions.

According to legend, the first settlers in the region often failed to conceive a child in their first marriage. And so they were forced to enter into a second marriage, hoping to at least have a child.





These girls are normal, but only one has a child

Subsequently, it became a tradition to marry twice, but have a child only with the second wife. Allegedly, it’s not worth trying with the first one, it won’t work anyway. Why these meaningless body movements?

But if, in order to deceive fate, girls are married off to trees and animals (in order to divert bad luck to an imaginary spouse, and not the next real one), then everything is not being done for fun.



And here are two pregnant women, one is not already pregnant with an elderly man

A man marries a real woman for the first time, and then begins to save his fortune for a second wedding. At the same time, it is recommended to still maintain chastity and take care of yourself for a second “normal” wife.

It is estimated that around 400 families live in this tradition in Derasar. If one of the wives dies, you can marry a third time, but more often they marry if the second “children’s” wife dies. If the first wife does have a child, but much later than the second, they will most likely turn a blind eye to this.



And I wouldn’t say that they live poorly. Beautiful outfits.

Escape from Happiness

How did this place become famous? After the pandemic, men often began to run away from it. Some are alone, some are with families.

And all because during quarantine, many men managed to get married and settle down at home. And suddenly they became friends with their first wives and fell in love with them. And they thought: why work so much for the sake of a second wife whom I don’t even know? This one wife suits me quite well.



Village women from one clan went for a walk, similar patterns on clothes

But when they announced that they did not want to seek a second marriage, society was furious. This is a violation of centuries-old traditions, and they really don’t like this in India.

And so they began to escape from the community into the big world. Because in all other respects, families felt comfortable living there; the town was no poorer than other simple towns. But it’s all due to the sudden realization that a second marriage is not always a blessing, but often a burden.



An old man and his two old women!

There are some interesting places in India, and it is especially interesting how completely unrelated events (a pandemic) expose their acute problems to the world.