Episode 76: The Dowry Laptop — When a Bride’s Gift Becomes Her Husband’s Weapon
Series: Broken by Burden: Financial Survival Strategies for the Troubled Mind
Date: 15 Sept 2025
🎭 A Click Away from Cruelty
A small town in West Bengal. The story of Mohona — a girl whose wedding gift turned into a tool of humiliation.
Characters:
- Mohona Sen (24): First-class B.Sc. graduate in mathematics, introverted but talented in graphic design. Daughter of a retired primary school teacher.
- Aniket Das (28): A junior executive in a regional bank. Appears calm, but deeply insecure. The only earning son in a middle-class family obsessed with image.
- Suparna Das: Aniket’s mother, emotionally manipulative, worships social standing.
- Mr. Sen: Mohona’s father. Calm, idealistic, financially drained after the wedding.
- Mrs. Sen: A pragmatic homemaker. Sacrifices her health and jewelry for the wedding.
- Laptop: Yes, a character — because it plays a chilling role.
🏠 The Marriage Begins
The marriage was a simple one — but the dowry list wasn’t.
A 3-sovereign gold chain, a fridge, a semi-automatic washing machine, and at Aniket’s special request: a high-end Lenovo laptop with SSD and Core i7.
Mohona’s parents, who had saved every penny for this day, gave in.
They sold her mother’s wedding bangles. Mr. Sen borrowed from his GPF (General Provident Fund). The laptop was purchased.
“It’s not dowry, beta — it’s her blessing,” Mrs. Sen told Mohona, tears in her eyes.
🖥️ The Laptop’s Real Use
Mohona loved design. She wanted to freelance post-marriage. That laptop was not a gift — it was her tool, her partner, her voice.
But a week into the wedding, it was no longer hers.
Aniket (one morning):
“I’ll take the laptop to work today. Your work can wait.”
Mohona (softly):
“I saved all my client logos and files on that. Can I finish a few designs before you leave?”
Aniket (coldly):
“That laptop is here because I asked for it. You can design when I allow.”
That was just the beginning.
📉 From Partner to Prisoner
Whenever Mohona resisted — about food habits, household chores, or her ambition to work — the same weapon would return.
The laptop.
Aniket (mocking):
“Why don’t you go ask your dad for a MacBook too? Maybe he’ll sell your mother’s kidney this time?”
Suparna (taunting):
“This girl came here with secondhand values and a new laptop. What a mismatch!”
Mohona tried to fight back, not with shouts — but silence.
Until one night, when Aniket locked the laptop inside his office drawer.
“Work now, Mrs. Designer,” he smirked.
That night, she cried — not because she lost a gadget.
But because she lost her identity.
📞 The Phone Call That Shook Her
Two months later, a call came from her father.
Mr. Sen (hesitant):
“Mohona… I’ve heard nothing from you. Are you… happy?”
She wanted to scream. To tell him the laptop was gone, her dreams buried, her dignity insulted daily.
But she simply replied:
“Yes, Baba. Very.”
That night, she took out her old college notebook and began sketching with pen — by candlelight during a power cut.
It wasn’t digital.
But it was hers.
🧠 Character Psychology
- Mohona: Believes in self-worth through skill, not submission. Feels betrayed not by her husband alone — but by the tradition that sold her dignity wrapped in a ribbon.
- Aniket: Grew up with conditional love. Sees control as masculinity. Feels insecure when his wife shows more promise than him.
- Suparna: The archetype of toxic conditioning — a woman who was once oppressed, now weaponizing that pain onto another.
💡 Reflection: What This Story Teaches Us
- Dowry isn’t always gold or furniture — sometimes, it’s a gift weaponized.
- Control doesn’t start with fists — it starts with access.
- Emotional abuse wears no bruises — just broken passwords and locked drawers.
🛠️ Financial and Emotional Strategies for Women
- Insist on digital independence.
If you receive devices like laptops or phones during marriage, ensure they’re registered in your name, with passwords only you control. - Maintain backups.
Always store personal and work-related files in secure cloud drives or pen drives. - Have a private bank account.
Keep emergency savings — however small — that your spouse doesn’t monitor. - Know your rights.
Dowry harassment, digital control, and emotional abuse are all actionable under Indian law.
🌱 Where She Is Now
Three years later, Mohona runs a freelance branding studio.
She did leave Aniket. Not with a court order — but with courage.
“I took nothing from that house,” she says.
“Except a lesson — that gifts can be curses if they come without freedom.”
Episode 77: The Collateral Child — When Parents Mortgage a Future They Don’t Understand
In the next story, a small-town father mortgages their only piece of land to admit his son to a flashy private engineering college. But when campus dreams crumble and a fake placement scam is exposed, they realize the child wasn’t the investment — but the collateral.
⚠️ Disclaimer:
Broken by Burden is a fictional blog series based on real social patterns and financial behaviors observed across diverse Indian households. All characters and incidents are dramatized for awareness purposes. For emotional, legal, or financial advice, please consult certified professionals. No part of this series promotes blame — it promotes reflection.
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