In a country where homosexuality is still a criminal offence and government officials call it a “genetic flaw curable by stem cell research”, instances of same sex marriages are few and far between. In spite of the social stigma attached to homosexuality and the rejection of this reality by significant portions of a significantly homophobic population, there are those who have the courage of their own convictions; some lucky enough to even enjoy familial and social support for their relationships.
Sameer Samudra and Amit Gokhale’s story
This Indian gay couple are settled in the United States. They met on the internet, came out to their families and went ahead to tie the knot to cement their love for each other in a wedding ceremony that followed Maharashtrian rituals.
Sandeep and Karthik’s story
Sandeep and Karthik wanted to pave the way for other gay couples to come out and garner acceptance for their respective relationships. They got married in California in a sumptuous ceremony that followed Malayali rituals. Engaged on February 2014, the couple got married in January 2015.
Shannon and Seema’s story
For Sheena and Shannon, it was love at first sight when Shannon saw Seema at the fitness class where she taught. Seema arrived at her wedding dressed in customary Indian clothing in a traditional doli. The wedding featured Hindu and Christian traditions; Shannon was walked down the aisle by her mother.
Vaibhav and Milind’s story
Vaibhav and Milind got married in Jogeshwari, a Mumbai suburb in a traditional marriage ceremony with friends and family in attendance. The wedding that followed a four year relationship was held at a friend’s house and featured all wedding rituals such as sangeet, mehndi and haldi.
Smruthi Narayan and Shwetha Pai’s story
They fell in love in college. The Hyderabad couple moved to the US and got married in San Francisco. The two had been disowned by their families when they first came out. Theirs is a committed relationship and the marriage didn’t change things all that much; but it did change how others looked at the couple.
The would-be gay marriage with a purely Indian twist
In addition to these stories there was the matrimonial ad for an arranged marriage; a distinctly Indian occurrence. However, this one was very different in one big way: Padma Iyer was anxious for her son Harrish to get married so the mother of the gay activist placed a matrimonial ad for “Well-Placed, Animal-Loving, Vegetarian GROOM for my SON”! The ad was rejected by several publications because of the apprehension that it would be against the law before finally being published by Mumbai tabloid Midday.
Author – Reena Daruwalla
