“Marrying a second time is heavily looked down upon in today’s society. But I want my story to stand as a testimony for people to never be afraid of standing up for themselves. I fell in love with my ex-husband way back in 2015. It blossomed into a beautiful relationship within no time and we set into a marriage a year later.

But what had to follow after that fatal day was something that I couldn’t have been prepared for. The guy’s family demanded heavy dowry from us right from a house, a car and even gold. But it was a very testing period for us because a week from the day of my marriage, we lost my father.

And since we were not in a place to fulfil the dowry requirements, the in-laws family started to physically abuse me. It was a just horrific to be on the receiving end of extreme physical abuse and torture from all the members of the in-laws family.

They confiscated my belongings right down to my educational certificates. I fled the place to go back to my mom’s and filed a complaint with a nearby police station but they hardly paid any heed to it. In fact, I was advised to go back to my in-laws despite showing proof of physical abuse.

But I decided to stand my ground and filed a divorce to be freed from my ex’s family. My certificates were mailed to my university as a lost and found case and I got them back. Three years down the line, I found the love of my life and we decided to tie the knot, me the second time.

I have braved all sorts of storms to be where I am today but that didn’t stop me from hoping and fighting for the life I deserved to live. People succumb to toxic marriages and yield themselves to living miserable lives due to the fear of society but I believe, it should never stop them from standing up and doing right by them. If my story’s any indication, there is still hope left for those of us who were dealt a horrid set of cards by life.”