A LIFE MORE ORDINARY

Japan’s Princess Mako has turned her back on the privileges and perks of royalty to marry her commoner sweetheart

- NICI DE WET

THEY’VE being dubbed Japan’s Meghan and Harry and the parallels are startling: a royal falls in love with a commoner and then rejects the wealth, status and privilege that comes with being a member of the monarchy and moves to America to start a new life.

The romance between Princess Mako, niece of the country’s Emperor Naruhito, and her commoner boyfriend, Kei Komuro – he of the rebellious ponytail and Western ways – has simultaneously gripped and divided Japan.

And recently, after years of controversy, the princess and the law graduate finally tied the knot in a subdued civil ceremony.

The event marked the end of a long and tumultuous road to the altar that’s seen Mako (30) giving up her royal status and re-starting life as an ordinary citizen.

Their union in a local registry office in Tokyo’s Akasata estate was a far cry from the pomp and ceremony of a traditional royal wedding with its elaborate rites and rituals.

“It’s a radical departure from what is expected from women of the imperial family,” says Shihoko Goto, an Asian affairs specialist at Washington-based think tank the Wilson Centre.

“She is prepared to make financial sacrifices and uproot herself from the comfort, safety and privileges of her life to pursue her own path.”

But it seems Kei just wants to be a loving husband to his vulnerable bride, whose mental health has taken a beating.