Unmarried rural youth in Maharashtra are planning a nationwide drive for government help in getting brides

Kisan Nanaware, 28, who staged a bride-demanding dharna at the district collector’s office in September, now plans to build a network of free rural youth to protest the state’s apathy towards their plight. | Photo credit: Special arrangement

It is not inflation, unemployment, deletion of names from the electoral roll or corruption that is simmering in the rural youth of Maharashtra as they gear up for agitation. Unlike other Gen Zs in India, these youngsters have an unusual demand – get us brides to marry.

“We are planning not just a national but a nationwide network of boys who do not want to get brides for marriage and plan a massive agitation,” Kisan Nanaware, a 28-year-old from Solapur, told The Hindu.

Mr. Nanaware came into limelight after he staged a bride-demanding dharna at the district collector’s office in September. He fears he may suffer the same fate as thousands of men in rural Solapur in western Maharashtra, pointing out that the problem extends far beyond men in their 30s, with some in their 40s and 50s having given up hope of finding a partner.

Youths like Mr Nanaware say the state must issue an official resolution detailing steps to help those who are not married. Among their main demands are the establishment of a marriage registration office for all religions under the Ministry of Social Welfare, the provision of direct financial assistance, the creation of stable rural jobs and the guarantee of remunerative prices for agricultural produce. He warns that if the authorities do not act, the movement may take an aggressive turn.

Politicians who faced various kinds of agitations are now facing the heat of free youth.

What was supposed to be a standard campaign stop for the Maharashtra Legislative Council elections at Ashti in Beed district (Marathwada region) took a dramatic turn when an agitated young man grabbed the microphone of the local organizers and voiced an issue that is spreading across rural Maharashtra to which he wanted an immediate response from the leaders. “Put all other issues aside and look at our condition,” he demanded, addressing a crowd of ruling alliance leaders gathered for the October 23 alumni and faculty elections. “Many of us, myself included, have gone past 30 or 32 and still can’t get brides. Solve this problem first!”

Leaders of the BJP-led ruling coalition were not entirely surprised by the outburst. Behind the scenes, politicians are monitoring simmering anger among rural men who are being systematically rejected by potential brides and their families due to declining farm incomes, lack of steady employment and a skewed gender ratio.

Maharashtra recorded a sex ratio of 899 girls per 1,000 boys in 2022-2024, a slight improvement from 896 girls in 2012-2014, but well below the national average of 918 girls, according to the latest statistical report of the Sample Registration System.

Unjoyful prospects

From ministers to leaders across party lines, veteran leader Sharad Pawar to the local grampanchayat sarpanch, young boys are now asking themselves one simple question: “What about our marriage? No one has an answer to that.”

“If not the leaders, who will answer? They have to solve at least one problem and that is the urgent one,” said 32-year-old Avinash Shende from Yavatmal in the Vidarbha region. Along with farming, he works under contract with a private cleaning agency and has not completed his high school diploma. He added that like him, other young people in the region are now galvanizing support to address the issue at the state level. He says the movement would start from gram sabhas in villages.

The BJP-led ruling alliance in the state is worried as frustrations on the ground are fast turning into an organized agitation. The agitated youth demanded that if the state government is unable to help them secure brides or improve their financial situation through stable jobs and fair agricultural prices, they must introduce a monthly pension scheme for single men.

‘Difficult Challenge’

“For a government that is already grappling with massive agitations over inflation, unemployment and the ongoing efforts of the Election Commission of India (SIR), this demographic crisis presents a difficult challenge. Unlike economic policy or infrastructure projects, addressing the social shortage of brides is not something that can be easily fixed by a government decree. But then the youth are in no mood to listen,” said a local BJP leader in Sangli district, who requested anonymity.

Kolhapur-based social activist Rupa Shah says the frustration of single youth is not only escalating as anger towards politicians, but also turning into a major social issue. “There are two angles to the problem. Now girls in rural areas are pursuing higher education and have aspirations and want to move to cities… also the skewed gender ratio due to killing the female fetus all these years is showing the impact,” she said.

Published – 28 Oct 2026 21:09 IST