Over the last 15 months, the COVID-19 pandemic has gradually made it's presence felt in every aspect of our lives. From masks becoming a fashionable accessory to Zoom weddings and more - our lives appear to have changed irrevocably. And so, it would only be natural that those contemplating the future also take the pandemic into account.
A matrimonial ad from a newspaper recently went viral for its somewhat unusual list of requirements for a groom. As the woman in the ad specified, she had received both doses of Covishield and wanted to find a match with suitable vaccine compatibility. While eventually debunked, the post was shared by many including Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and continues to make the rounds.
"Vaccinated bride seeks vaccinated groom! No doubt the preferred marriage gift will be a booster shot!? Is this going to be our New Normal?" he tweeted, sharing the clipping. Since then, while several people have flagged the post for being fake, it remains on the lawmaker's profile.
Several editions of the post exist, having been cropped to various proportions. As per some other tweets and Facebook posts, the article seems to be on the letterhead of "Goa Tim...". Similar posts can however be generated online using websites such as fodey.com.
Indeed, our efforts to generate an ad led to the creation of an article nearly identical to the one going viral on social media, including the overlapping text from the adjacent article.
Additionally, the font and black and white print seen in the ad does not match existing publications with the same name (such as Goa Times).
