Same-sex marriage case could bring gold rush to Indian wedding industry
When India’s Supreme Court started hearing a case to legalise same-sex marriage earlier this year, matchmaker Kamakshi Madan suddenly received an increase in enquiries from parents seeking spouses for their LGBTQ+ children. “I had mothers calling me looking for husbands for their sons,” Madan, a specialist matchmaker for the LGBTQ+ community, said by phone from Pune, a city in western India.
A ruling to allow same-sex couples to marry would be a huge boost to the LGBTQ+ wedding industry in the country of more than 1.4 billion people, where families often spend the equivalent of tens of thousands of dollars on lavish ceremonies that can last for several days.
Indians spend a fifth of the total wealth accumulated in their lifetime on their weddings, according to loan provider Reliance Money, in a trillion rupee ($12 billion) industry.
Some same-sex couples have been tying the knot unofficially since India decriminalised homosexuality in 2018, exchanging vows before families and friends in unrecognised ceremonies.
