Skip to main content

💍 Poor Wife, Rich Wife

Toastmasters Pathways – Level 1, Project 3: Body Language and Vocal Variety

Objective: Use body language and vocal variety to enhance your message and keep the audience engaged.

Today, let me sweep you into the epicenter of Indian tradition —
a Telugu wedding, the grand theatre where culture and opulence waltz together,
hand in hand, just like the beaming bride and groom at the sacred mandap.

Fragrant jasmine, marigold garlands blooming in every corner,
and that unmistakable melody of the nadaswaram weaving through the air.
The priest’s chants rise and fall as cousins dart about, balancing overflowing tamboolams,
and somewhere in the background — the intoxicating scent of fresh pulihora and ghee
does its own aarti in your nostrils.

🍽️ On the dining front…​

A spectacle awaits!

  • Twenty tongue-tingling dishes
  • Elegantly arranged on a fifteen-inch banana leaf — so big,
    only Lord Ganesha himself could contemplate finishing it all.

Eight cameramen zigzagging through the crowd,
determined to capture every stolen glance and every blink.

And in the midst of this pageantry:
Our glowing bride — wrapped in ornate Kanchivaram silk,
draped in layers of jewelry,
her smile never faltering over the 5-hour-long reception.

But not to be outdone — the dining hall videographer springs into action,
bellowing:

“Before touching your papad, SMILE and display your banana leaf!”

💑 And after the ceremonies…​

The couple step into married life,
armed with blessings, ladoos,
and the hope of building a home on a foundation of love, laughter, and stable finances.

Mrs. Rao? A champ at equity investing.
Ever the cheerleader, Rao gave her access to his wallet along with his heart.
Soon, her stocks soared —
and the home felt blessed by Lakshmi herself.

Indian bureaucracy respects documents more than declarations of love.

Suddenly, like a twist in a family drama, Rao heard:

“According to tax law, your wife is poor. The profits are yours alone.”

Wait — what?!
All those rituals?
All those sacred vows?
The mangalsutra — the symbols of union?

Vanish before the cold logic of a tax table?

Here, in the land of Parvati-Parameshwar and Sita-Rama, our marriages are eternal…
but the taxman thinks we’re just flatmates sharing rent!

🧾 Let’s decode this…​

✅ Scenario One:​

If Mr. Rao earns and gifts any asset to Mrs. Rao —
shares, FDs — out comes the waving finger:

“Arre bhai, this paisa is still yours!”

Gold? Sarees? Bangles? Fine.
But assets that grow?
Club and tax please!

So a woman who steers the family budget, invests,
or runs the household like a CEO —
still remains “poor” in the eyes of the law,
her worth measured in tolas, not talent.

✅ Scenario Two:​

If both partners earn —
live under the same roof,
eat from the same fridge,
and store documents in the same Godrej almirah…

The taxman coolly declares:

“You are financially unrelated. Joint returns? That’s not our sanskar.”

Sorry, housewives!
No Form 16, no recognition — just resignation.

Income tax — where logic goes missing faster than a spoon at a wedding buffet.

👩‍👩‍👧 The invisible tax on women​

Mothers, wives, grandmothers —
women who keep the diya glowing, the family thriving — are invisible.

Their value? In carats, not capability.

What an irony…
In a land that worships Goddess Lakshmi,
but refuses to count her in our ledgers!

📉 Example:​

  • A solo earner pays ₹6 lakhs tax on ₹30 lakhs.
  • A double-income couple, 15L each? Just ₹3 lakhs combined.
  • An NRI uncle with a suitcase full of tissue paper?
    Taxman says, “Come, enjoy, no tax!”

🧘‍♀️ Time to reform…​

Our scriptures remind us:

“Where women are honored, there even the gods dwell.”

But our tax code?
Still living like a bachelor — blissfully immune to Indian family values!

📢 Friends, it’s time we ask…​

Why must laws treat families who walk together, pray together, and dream together
as separate entries in a ledger?

💬 Let’s urge our policymakers:​

  • Stop inventing new taxes on popcorn and caramel popcorn!
  • Instead, recognize what India has always known:
    Families are our strength.

Let’s bring reforms for joint filing.

Won best speaker of the day at Hosur TM club. Although I would never attempt a speech with social message. Hard to deliver with full energy because someone might get offended, income tax dept in this case.