My father forcefully got me engaged 5 years ago without my consent and now wants me to marry in 6 months. How do I stop this?”

I am a 23-year-old woman and I need advice on how to get out of an arranged marriage engagement that I never wanted.

My father got me engaged 5 years ago without asking for my consent. From the very beginning, I did not like my fiancé and I have never wanted to marry him. Over the past 5 years, I have tried many times to make my family understand that I am unhappy with this engagement. In my family, we do not openly discuss these topics with my father, so I mostly communicated through my mother.

My father has always been against my decision and refuses to accept that I do not want this marriage. He is very concerned about family reputation and what society will say if the engagement is broken. Whenever I bring up ending the engagement, he emotionally blackmails me, threatens me, and makes me feel guilty.

The most frustrating part is that my fiancé and his family know that I am not happy with this relationship. They have known for years that I do not want this marriage, yet they have done nothing to end the engagement. My fiancé once told me, “Don’t try to change me. Tell your father to break the engagement. If he doesn’t listen to you, that’s not my problem.” Since then, he has basically left the entire situation to me.

Now my family wants to get me married within the next 6–7 months, and I feel trapped. If I continue refusing, I may face more restrictions, emotional pressure, and loss of freedom at home.

I am an adult and I do not consent to this marriage, but I feel like nobody is taking my wishes seriously. I am looking for practical advice from anyone who has been in a similar situation or knows what options I have. How can I stop this marriage from happening when both families already know I do not want it, but still continue with the plans?