Yet it took a long time for such marriages to be accepted by Hindu society. A strong religious group took Panthulu to court on this issue! He created history by performing a widow remarriage in Purasaiwalkam, Madras. The most famous of them were Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar and Kandukuri Veeresalingam Panthulu who faced opposition and danger to life and limb. The practice continued for centuries and during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, some social reformers took up the cudgels and fought for widow remarriage. The tradition-bound society felt it was an intrusion by the British rulers into the time-honoured customs. In some families, she was taken to task if she laughed loudly! Indeed, the Indian Government passed “The Hindu Widow Remarriage Act” as early as 1856, but it didn't help matters. In some orthodox communities, she had to tonsure her head regularly. She could not wear jewels or flowers and had to be attired in white. The lot of the Hindu widow has been one of untold misery, anguish and denial of comforts and she was ostracised even by her family. It had a socially relevant message about the efficacy of the joint family system and remarriage of young Hindu widows. A significant film made at the AVM Studio as a partnership venture with S.
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