Deepika Padukone's parents Prakash Padukone, Ujjala are cousins? Netizens react as Reddit post goes viral

Actress Deepika Padukone has left netizens baffled after they found out that her parents are cousins. Deepika's father Prakash is a renowned badminton player. However not much is known about her mother Ujjala. Recently a post on Reddit attracted netizens as it claimed, "Deepika Padukone's parents are cousins." The post is supported by a screenshot of a news article, stating that Deepika's parents are second cousins. Earlier in an interview, Prakash also confirmed the same.  

The Reddit post left netizens baffled. However, many fans defended the actress, stressing that consanguineous marriages have been a part of South Indian culture. A netizen commented on the post, saying, "I have known this for many years. It surprised me a little when I found out, but not a lot, as I was aware of consanguineous marriages among communities in South India. Such instances are steadily decreasing with every decade as newer generations get more and more globalised and move out of the common locations where their communities are based."

Another netizen wrote, "It used to be quite common in Karnataka a few generations ago. One of my schoolmates married her cousin. Paternal aunt’s son." A netizen wrote, "India has different cultures and this is pretty common in South India."

Prakash Padukone on their marriage

Earlier in an interview, Prakash spilt beans about his marriage and recalled, "I remember I played the national championship in which I lost. Despite being the world's no 1, I had lost the national championship for the first time after nine years. I was very disappointed but quickly got back and realised that in sports sometimes you lose and sometimes you win so you can’t get excited about either and can neither feel excited after a victory nor sulk after a defeat."

Sr Padukone further stated, "I got married to my second cousin Ujjala soon after and we moved to Copenhagen as I found a job there and lived there till 1986 when Deepika was born. I retired in 1989." Deepika also has a younger sister, Anisha Padukone, who is a golfer. 

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