BANGALORE - All Athira Sujatha Radhakrishnan, 33, and Shameem P, 34, wanted for their wedding was a fun reception party with friends and family. After some initial reservations about social stigma, Ms Radhakrishnan's Hindu parents and Mr Shameem's Muslim parents eventually supported their decision to marry.

Ms Radhakrishnan is a public policy professional and Mr Shameem a start-up consultant. They are not religious "so there was no conversation about conversion", Ms Radhakrishnan said. But since they belonged to different faiths, the couple had to apply for a civil union under the Special Marriage Act. In accordance with the law, their application was put on the local marriage registrar office's notice board for 30 days.