News
27 August 2006
Photo By : usha titikshu
Cross-dressers clad in red saris danced to the tunes of teej, guests and onlookers clapped and cheered as Anil Mahaju, 25 put vermilion, the ultimate symbol of a Nepali marriage, on the forehead of Diya Kashyap, 21.
As it drizzled lightly this Saturday morning, the rooftop of the Blue Diamond Society (BDS) building at Lazimpat was hosting the first official gay marriage of Nepal.
“We love each other. That is why we are getting married,” said Diya simply. Dressed in a red sari and a glittering see-through veil, the shy bride looked just like any other Nepali bride.
The nature of the wedding ceremony was simple and semi-traditional in nature. Attended by friends of the couple, members of the BDS, same-sex community activists and members of the press, the wedding signifies an event that goes beyond the traditional values of this nation. The wedding also announces that homosexuals exist and are now demanding rights equal to that of their heterosexual counterparts.
“I hope that our step will pave the way for other homosexuals to come out of the closet,” said Anil, the bridegroom of the wedding ceremony.
Same-sex marriage has become an accepted practice in many countries around the world but the concept is new to Nepal. Although Nepali law still bars same-sex marriages, and public opinion is usually against it, Anil and Dia have taken a bold step that will definitely bring up the suppressed issue of homosexuality out to the surface for public discourse.
Nepali constitution has no place for homosexuals but the BDS, an organization that serves as a platform for sexual minorities of the country, is planning to put pressure on the government to make laws that allow same-sex marriages in the new constitution.
Sunil Babu Pant, the coordinator of BDS says, “There are more than 20,000 Nepalis who are either cross-genders or homosexuals but this is the first time that a couple has been bold enough to take a step of this proportion.”
Although public opinion is divided about same-sex marriages and traditionalists might term it “unthinkable”, Dia and Anil's marriage is a signal to the public that there is a growing homosexual community in our nation. And whether the public is for or against it, the homosexuals are not afraid to live the way they feel is right.
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