Bollywood actress Rakhi using ancient practice of swayamvar to modernize India?

Travelers to India are not accustomed to seeing images of naked or barely-clothed Indian women. Until very recently, even showing a couple kissing in a Bollywood movie would spark huge controversy in this largely-Hindu country.

But the times are changing in India. Even nudity is coming to Bollywood films. One of the actresses at the forefront of the sexual revolution in India is Rakhi Sawant. Her nude scenes in movies have caused controversy and she was arrested on obscenity charges for gestures she made while wearing a skimpy costume in a stage show.

Rakhi now is the star of a hit reality TV show in India, "Rakhi Ka Swayamvar," in which she is choosing a husband from 16 suitors. It is based on the ancient Indian practice of swayamvar in which the father of a girl of marrying age would seek suitors for his daughter. The suitors would gather together and the girl and the family would then choose the groom from among them, sometimes requiring them to perform various tasks displaying their suitability as a husband. Eventually, the girl would place a garland on the winner and a marriage ceremony would be held immediately.

Arranged marriages are still common in India, with the bride often having little input in the selection process. However, more and more young people are ignoring tradition and opting to select their own mate.
Rakhi is calling the shots in her version of swayamvar, without parental support. She has narrowed the list of suitors down to three, with Canadian businessman Elesh Parjunwala considered the front runner to receive the garland in the show’s August 2 finale.

So will she move to Canada if she selects Parjunwala? “After the marriage, my husband and I will go back to our respective work, wherever it takes us,” she told the Times of India. “And I am certainly not ready to give up my career.”

Rakhi got her start in Bollywood as an “item girl.” The item girl is often a scantily-clad dancer appearing only in a film’s “item number,” a musical scene which may or may not advance the plot of the film. Rakhi does not shy away from being referred to as an item girl.

“Why should I be ashamed of being called an item girl? Do you know what is the meaning of being called an item girl? It means you are beautiful, you have a great figure and you are a fabulous dancer,”

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