Explained: Why is the Sologamy trend finding resonance across the globe?

India

oi-Deepika S

Sologamy,
the
act
of
marrying
oneself
to
oneself,
is
rare
but
not
new
to
us.
A
self-marriage,
looks
exactly
like
any
other
traditional
marriage,
including
guests,
a
cake,
and
a
reception.
It
has
become
increasingly
popular
in
the
21st
century,
especially
among
affluent
women.

New
Delhi,
Jun
03:
Come
June
11,
India
is
set
to
witness
first
solo
wedding
or
sologamy,
as
a
24-year-old
woman
from
Gujarat
is
going
to
marry
herself
with
all
rituals
and
ceremonies.

Unlike
other
brides,
Kshama
Bindu,
a
resident
of
Gujarat’s
Vadodara
who
works
for
a
private
firm,
wishes
to
marry
herself
with
all
rituals
and
ceremonies,
including
pheras
and
the
application
of
vermilion
(sindoor).
The
bride
has
also
written
five
vows
to
herself.

Interestingly,
post
her
wedding
ceremony,
Bindu
will
also
be
heading
to
Goa
for
a
two-week
honeymoon.

What
is
sologamy?

Sologamy,
the
act
of
marrying
oneself
to
oneself,
is
rare
but
not
new
to
us.
Sologamy,
also
called
autogamy
is
marriage
by
a
person
to
themselves.
Supporters
of
the
practice
argue
that
it
affirms
one’s
own
value
and
leads
to
a
happier
life.

Sologamy
is
also
termed
self-marriage,
but
this
may
also
refer
to
a
self-uniting
marriage,
which
is
a
marriage
without
an
officiant.

Is
sologamy
legal
in
India?

‘Sologamy’ is
not
legal
in
many
countries,
including
India.
Experts
say
that
as
per
Indian
laws,
you
cannot
marry
yourself.
There
has
to
be
two
persons
in
a
marriage.
Sologamy
is
not
legal.”

“The
Hindu
Marriage
Act
uses
the
terminology
‘either
of
the
spouse’,
which
simply
means
that
there
must
be
two
persons
to
complete
the
marriage.
Sologamy
will
never
pass
the
legal
scrutiny.

Sologamy
ceremony

Ceremonies
in
a
self-marriage,
looks
exactly
like
any
other
traditional
marriage,
including
guests,
a
cake,
and
a
reception.

Self-marriage
has
become
increasingly
popular
in
the
21st
century,
especially
among
affluent
women.
As
of
2014,
a
travel
agency
in
Kyoto
is
offering
self-marriage
packages
for
women,
with
some
customers
being
wives
who
were
dissatisfied
with
their
original
wedding.

When
did
Sologamy
trend
begin?

The
first
instance
of
sologamy
is
believed
to
have
started
with
Linda
Baker,
the
first
person
to
wed
herself
in
1993.
The
next
wedding
happens
to
be
NBA
player
Dennis
Rodman
marrying
himself
in
1996.

Several
television
series
have
featured
characters
who
married
themselves.
Those
include
Sue
Sylvester
in
Glee,
Carrie
Bradshaw
in
Sex
and
The
City,
Holly
Franklin
in
season
4
of
The
Exes,
a
middle-aged
man
in
Jam,
The
Red
Guy
in
the
episode
“Comet!”
of
Cow
and
Chicken
and
Rona
Jefferson
in
Doctors.
Valerie
Pitman,
also
from
Doctors,
had
a
storyline
that
sees
her
marry
herself.

In
the
2016
Ben
Stiller
movie
Zoolander
2,
the
transgender
model
All
(portrayed
by
Benedict
Cumberbatch)
is
married
to
herself,
as
it’s
told
that
“monomarriage
is
finally
legal
in
Italy”.

Why
is
the
Sologamy
trend
finding
resonance
across
the
globe?

Single
is
the
new
normal
today.

Gujarat
girl,
Kshama
Bindu,
who
wishes
to
marry
herself
next
week,
wished
to
break
stereotypes
and
inspire
others
who
are
“tired
of
finding
true
love.”

“I
just
want
to
break
stereotypes
and
inspire
others
to
love
themselves.
There
are
people
who
are
tired
of
finding
love
or
getting
divorced
multiple
times.
Being
a
bisexual,
I
was
also
in
love
with
a
man
and
a
woman
in
the
past.
But
now,
I
want
to
give
all
the
love
to
myself,”
she
said.

“Today,
for
the
first
time
in
history,
women
can
afford
to
live
on
their
own,
build
their
careers,
buy
their
homes,
create
their
own
lives,
have
children
if
they
choose.
Our
mothers
and
grandmothers
didn’t
have
this
option….The
idea
of
sologamy
could
involve
the
practice
of
self-marriage,
but
it’s
also
turning
the
stigma
of
the
sad,
lonely
spinster
on
its
head.
Women
are
tired
of
being
told
they’re
failures
if
they
haven’t
married
by
a
certain
expiry
date,
”
Alexandra
Gill,
the
founder
of
Marry
Yourself
Vancouver,
told
CBC
News,
in
2017.

The
Sologomy
trend
makes
the
wedding
all
about
you,
literally
and
many
women
are
loving
it.