83% feel pressured when it comes to marriage While the nation has made meaningful progress in improving gender equality, we still seem to have a long way to go, particularly in the case of matrimony and its orthodox methods. A study by Shaadi.com with 213 women from across India revealed that 83% women face a lot of pressure from society when it comes to her marriage. Pressure that is born, not out of her needs or wants, but rather on what society expects out of her. She is judged and questioned at every step in this journey. The findings revealed that, 75% women continued to be rushed towards getting married after a certain age. Not just that, they are even judged if they are moving at their own pace with 72% women expressing that they feel the pressure to decide quickly as they are told “the good boys will go”. And 70% said they are even tagged as picky and choosy if they reject many matches brought to them by family and friends. More so, over 62% women are constantly reminded of their biological clock ticking when they take time to find the right match. Taking a closer look at these findings, on the occasion of International Women’s Day, Shaadi Cares, a social initiative by Shaadi.com urges everyone to #TakeThePressureOff women with a digital campaign. Through this initiative they urge family and friends to be supportive of the choices of a woman and give her the space and freedom to choose a life partner for herself, free of any judgement and pressure. Commenting on the survey, Adhish Zaveri, Senior Director – Marketing, Shaadi.com said, “Choice is not optional. Women having the agency to say No to a prospect without any ramifications or justifications is an essential step towards gender parity in matchmaking. With this initiative, we wish to highlight the importance of backing the women in your life and taking the pressure off in their matchmaking jourey.“ Commenting on the campaign, Supriya Pilgaonkar said, ‘‘I strongly believe in this issue of taking the pressure off and I am very happy to associate with Shaadi.com for this. In our times, most women didn’t have the courage to reject a potential match and follow their heart. But times are changing and with that so should people. I'm glad the campaign is educating parents and relatives to #TakeThePressureOff women in the matchmaking journey.” Commenting on the campaign, Shriya Pilgaonkar said, “While the world has evolved, even today women face a lot of pressure from immediate family, relatives and society in general espcially when it comes to marriage. I am thrilled to be a part of this campaign launched by Shaadi.com who has always worked towards helping #TakeThePressureOff women in their matchmaking journeys. It is important to normalise saying no to a potential match, as women must have every right to be in a position of choice without fear or judgement“ .