Two young members of the LGBT community in Mumbai got married on Jan. 31, 2015, and then attended the LGBT pride parade, still in their wedding attire.
Vaibhav and Milind told BuzzFeed India in an email that the ceremony was held at a friend's house in Jogeshwari, and that only close friends and a few family members who knew about them attended.
“A Sanskrit teacher conducted the ceremony in a traditional Marathi fashion," the couple told BuzzFeed India. "And all the ceremonies including Mehendi, Haldi, Sangeet were performed.”
The couple, who are both originally from Mumbai, said, "We had been in a relationship for more than four years. Tying the knot provided a new definition to our love and made the bond between us stronger."
"Although our parents were not supportive, some of our family members, mostly our cousins, did participate in the ceremony with great zeal."
The couple told BuzzFeed India that their friends were very supportive, and took care of everything required for the ceremonies, including the shopping and decorations.
The couple faced a significant challenge in finding a Pandit willing to perform the ceremony. "Once we found one, he researched a lot and made the necessary changes in the mantras and the ceremonies to suit a man-man union," they said.
After the ceremony, the couple said that they are now living together.
They also said, "People are very supportive. We were overwhelmed by the positive response from friends, colleagues, and neighbours who found out about us through the newspapers."
Despite significant media attention, the couple does not fear legal consequences. “The entire LGBT crowd congratulated us for the huge and brave step we took, and have stood by us, and offered any help which added to our strength," they told BuzzFeed.
Homosexuality is illegal in India under section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, a law dating back to 1860 when India was under British rule.
Note: All photos in this post were sent to BuzzFeed by the couple, and published here with their permission.