The rise of the ‘Instagram husband’

Behind every pouting, perfectly filtered picture of a pretty spouse is a sometimes willing, sometimes forced bloke trying to get that Instagram worthy picture that will get a thumbs up on his partner’s social media post. And while there are celeb partners like Jay Z who go the whole hog trying to capture their partner in the most flattering light, there are others who simply have to grin and bear it.

How it all started?

Recently, a picture shared by Beyonce went viral. It was part of a series of images documenting her family’s trip to Paris during the European leg of the Formation World tour. In the picture, Jay Z’s reflection can be seen in the mirror as he snaps a picture of his wife wearing a mint green dress in an elevator. It gave fans every reason to declare Jay Z the face of Instagram husbands. A term used to describe men who are forced to be the photographer in their wives’ mission to snap the perfect social media image. And while it did not look like Jay Z was complaining. That cannot always be said for the millions of others who seem to have little say in the matter.

‘You may be clicking the picture, but it’s she who’ll decide if you have got it right’

Shreedhar Seth (name changed), a call centre executive, says, “Being an Instagram husband takes a lot of patience. After all, you maybe the one with the camera in your hand, but it’s your partner who decides if the picture you have taken is the perfect one or not. Getting the right angle, the perfect lighting and pose takes patience and a lot of time. If you don’t manage to get the right click, you will be labelled a bad photographer, who takes unflattering pictures. You are stuck on both sides. If you are good, you end up clicking your partner’s pictures whenever she is in the mood for it. If you are bad, well you have to get better. Either way it’s your fault, and you have little say. Every bad picture taken is the fault of the camera, horrible lighting and your lack of picture taking skills.”

‘Instagram husband/wife they are just labels’

Rohit Sharma, a travel executive adds, “Being an Instagram husband is like being a shopping partner. There are men who enjoy it and others who hate it but end up tagging along with the idea because it makes their partner happy. At the end, these are labels. It’s not a big deal.”

Moral of the story Jay Z may give many out there relationship goals, but you should make your own. And for those who simply do not have the courage to stand their ground and say no,  there’s some comfort in knowing that you are not alone trying to be the perfect Instagram husband.

He did it too!

Photographer Murad Osmann is the best example of a happy Instagram husband, as he gained popularity with his  “Follow Me To” project back in 2012, when he started capturing images of his girlfriend Natalia holding his hand in different locales around the globe.