An equal union

Why is the legal recognition of same-sex marriages being touted as the next big milestone for the LGBT rights movement in India?

When the Supreme Court read down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code in 2018, it seemed that decriminalisation of same-sex intimacies would be quickly followed by the legal recognition of same-sex marriages. This aspiration for marriage equality is also reflected in Hitesh Kewalya’s film Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (2020). Aman Tripathi, who wants to marry Kartik Singh, tells the family priest, “According to the scriptures, marriage is a union of two souls, right? Do souls have a gender?”

Since the priest refuses to conduct the wedding rituals, these gay lovers walk around the ceremonial fire singing the song “Yeh Dosti