"This S*** Marriage Ends here": Chinese Woman's Grand Divorce Party

A woman in China celebrated her divorce by organising a grand party announcing the end of the four-year marriage. According to South China Morning Post (SCMP), the woman, surnamed Song, and her friend hung red-coloured banners that announced: "This s*** marriage ends here" and "Warm congratulations on our diva becoming single again". They also performed celebratory rituals such as stepping over a fire basin, taking a pomelo leaf shower for "cleansing", and singing a song, the outlet further said in its report.

The woman, aged 34, had arranged for a photographer to take pictures of the entire divorce process, including the moment she received the certificate of separation from her husband.

The outlet quoted the woman as saying on social media platform Xiaohongshu, "I would have divorced long ago if I had known it would make me feel so happy." Her post received 230,000 likes.

The woman told SCMP that she had seen a message on her husband's mobile phone that revealed that he had been cheating on her.

Song's divorce was formalised in June, and since then, the topic has gone viral on Chinese social media platforms. SCMP said that on Xiaohongshu, the hashtag #divorce has received 2.76 billion views while the hashtag #divorcephotography has garnered 8.3 million views.

Yu Jia, assistant professor at Peking University's Centre for Social Research, said the trend of divorce photos and celebration parties showed an increasing social acceptance of divorce.

"Statistical data showed more women initiating divorce than men even though they faced stigmatisation and discrimination. There has been higher social tolerance to divorce as it becomes increasingly common," the assistant professor said.

In May, a woman in India shattered stereotypes by coming up with a unique photoshoot to celebrate her divorce.

Artist and fashion designer Shalini shared a series of pictures on her Instagram account, in which she celebrated the end of a "bad marriage" and her new-found singlehood. She wore a red dress, while holding the letters "DIVORCE".