Indian women are ‘OK’ with live-in relationships

As per a survey, more women are now coming out in support of cohabitation and 26% of millennials think it is a better option than marriage

For long the concept and topic of live-in relationships has been taboo in India, but the times are changing with a number of women coming out in its support, according to a survey. A popular news app conducted a poll in the second week of May capturing the views of 1.4 lakh netizens — 80 per cent being in the age group of 18-35 years.

According to the survey, more than 80 per cent millennials think that live-in relationships are still considered a taboo in Indian society while more than 47 per cent Indians are of the opinion that marriage is better when choosing between marriage and lifelong liveins.

More than 80 per cent Indians said that they do support live-ins as a way of life. Out of these, 26 per cent millennials went a step ahead and said that they would choose lifelong live-ins as an option over marriages.

On the other hand, 86 per cent Indians are of the opinion that lust is not the sole reason behind live-ins and more than 45 per cent say that it is more of compatibility testing before marriage. In the report, 45 per cent respondents have also said that since Indian society constantly judges unmarried couples staying together, any move by the judiciary to support this will not have any effect on their mindset.

Azhar Iqubal, CEO and Cofounder of the news app says, “Live-in relationships, even after being legally recognised by the government, is a forbidden subject of discussion in Indian households. Our current survey was focused on capturing the sentiments of our Indian youth on such delicate issues.”