When Shakespeare used the phrase ‘Love is blind’ in his play Merchant of Venice, he might not have imagined the sensation it would become later. Love is a feeling that is felt from the heart. We often come across couples who according to us do not make a good match. In some cases, the girl would be too pretty for the boy or in some they are poles apart. But when you dig into their love story, you would get to know how right Shakespeare was all the way back in the 16th Century. OTV brings a true love story of a couple in this dog-eat-dog world.
At a time women look for handsome hunks with a fat salary for marriage, a Jagatsinghpur-based girl has set an example by marrying a differently-abled man. After seven years of courtship, Swapnarani Barik tied the nuptial knot with her love Jitendra Barik who hails from Talcher.
According to sources, the couple came to know about each other through Facebook. They became friends and later they started chatting on the social media. Then they exchanged numbers and started talking to each other. Meanwhile, Jitendra lost his mother and became shattered. Swapnarani came to Talcher just to become Jitendra’s support in his tough time. In the process, they fell in love and decided to get married. Their story did not end here.
One fateful day when Jitendra was on his way home from his workplace he met with a road mishap. A speeding truck hit him leaving him writhing in pain on the road. Doctors had to amputate both legs of Jitendra in order to save his life.
After losing his both legs, he had never imagined that girl like Swapnarani would ever accept him as her groom. Proving him wrong, Swapnarani expressed her desire to marry Jitendra. The couple got married in a Shiva shrine on July 8. Later they had to remarry at Sub-collector’s office to get it accepted by society on July 30.
Jitendra’s neighbour said, “Swapnarani has done a noble job by marrying Jitendra. She proved that true love still exists in this selfish world.”
Jitendra’s brother said, “Women generally want to get married to well-settled guys. Despite knowing Jitendra’s financial and physical condition, Swapnarani came forward to marry him. I would like to urge the government to provide some financial aid to Jitendra so that he can run his family happily.”
Social worker Bapi Mohanty said “This marriage has set an example for today’s youth mass. The young generation must learn from this couple what is true love and how to maintain that.”