Bollywood actor Swara Bhasker and political activist Fahad Ahmad marked their first wedding anniversary on Friday, 16 February. The couple tied the knot under the Special Marriage Act, 1954, in 2023.
To mark the special occasion, Swara shared some unseen pictures of herself with Fahad on social media and penned a long note reminiscing about their unconventional yet romantic journey.
While Fahad comes from a political background, Swara comes from the film industry. Talking about the several differences between them, Swara wrote on Instagram, "‘Wise men say, only fools rush in…’ Fahad & I certainly rushed into marriage, but were friends for 3 years prior. It was a love neither of us noticed blossoming, perhaps because the differences between us were many. Hindu-Muslim was only the most obvious. I’m older than Fahad & we come from different worlds: a big city girl from an ethnically mixed English speaking family & a small town boy from a traditional Western UP family that speaks Urdu & Hindustani. I’m an actress in Hindi films, he’s a research scholar, activist & politician. But our liberal arts education & values gave us a shared language of political beliefs & a common vision for our society & country. We met at the CAA-NRC protests in December 2019 & even organised one together. Slowly, we became close confidants."
"I felt safe with Fahad & always seen by him. He said he could talk to me about anything without fear of judgement. After months of intense communication & night long conversations, I asked Fahad what next. He said though we were worlds apart, we were very compatible, he was very fond of me & if I waited 2-3 years for him to ‘settle’ we could marry. I was stunned but also disarmed by his confidence & candour. I always thought I had gone beyond the log kya kahenge (What would people say) mentality, but suddenly, I was worrying about how family, friends, filmy acquaintances & even my ever loyal trolls would react. I had to face the secret shadows in my heart. Amazingly, Fahad could read my unspoken fears & we worked through them," Swara added.
Have a look at their post here:
She concluded her post by adding, "Our families were concerned, but we stood by our love. Our shocked parents accepted our BIG decision, though hesitantly & after gently laying out concerns. When they met us together, I think they felt reassured. We were married under the SMA one year ago today. Fittingly, a relationship that began at a protest to preserve the Constitution was solemnised under constitutional provisions. A month later (I was pregnant by then), we celebrated at my nana-nani’s home with shared customs. There was lots of music, feasting & a Daawat-e-Walima. The joyous 10-day affair felt like a cultural mahotsav!"
Sharing an unseen video from her wedding day in another post on Instagram, Swara wrote, "Elvis Presley said ‘fools rush in’.. well we were the fools who couldn’t help falling in love! One year ago we took a leap of faith and registered our marriage under the Special Marriage Act in a court in Bombay. And then celebrated with family and friends. It’s been a year and here is a look in our hearts! Only gratitude for such amazing family and friends!
Have a look at the video here:
Swara and Fahad welcomed their first child, a daughter named Raabiyaa, in September 2023.
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