What would happen to Mani Ratnam’s lead couple in ‘Bombay’ under the SMA?

In this edition of The Next Wave, Chethana V looks at the Special Marriage Act and the way it affects people's lives by interpreting Mani Ratnam's Bombay under it. Sign up here to receive The Next Wave in your inbox every other Thursday..Movies and popular culture revel in the idea of a court marriage. It is the epitome of love on the part of the protagonists – a love that does not recognise religion, caste, or class, a love that does not require approval, and a love that does not wait for permission. The hero and the heroine wear simple clothes and stand in front of a wooden desk, a bespectacled man sits behind it, beaming at them. Add to this scene a great background score and make the characters say the right words with correct pauses, the marriage is done.However, if they are solemnising their marriage under the Special Marriage Act (SMA) in India, this is where we will, unfortunately, have to yell ‘Cut’ and ask them to purchase a roll of red tape.The history of the Special Marriage Act can be traced back to British India. During this time, marriages that took place between Indians were not regulated by legislation. Along with the struggle for independence, there was also a need in the country to recognise inter-religious and inter-caste unions, and for a secular form of marriage. A law - Act to Provide a Form of Marriage in Certain Cases – emerged in 1872 after various versions of its Bills were hotly debated. This law dealt with marriages between two people of different religions and the marriage could be solemnised after the bride and groom declare that they do not “profess the Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Muhammadan, Parsi, Buddhist, Sikh or Jain religion”.The Special Marriage Act, as it stands today, is not different from the 1872 legislation. We can view the differences by borrowing the characters and setting of Mani Ratnman’s 1995 movie Bombay starring Arvind Swamy and Manisha Koirala, and examine how the film would have fared in reality..If Bombay was set in 1873Shekar and Shaila Banu want to solemnise their marriage under the 1872 Act. As they are from different religions, there is stiff familial opposition to this union. They decide to run away from the Madras Presidency and go to the Bombay Presidency to solemnise their marriage. It is a difficult journey, as they do not have sufficient funds. However, they make it to Bombay.They go to the Marriage Registrar’s office who recognises their distinct Tamil accent and asks them how long they have been residing in Bombay. When they tell them that they have escaped grievous harm for the sake of love, the Registrar is not impressed. He tells them that they need to live as residents in Bombay for 14 days at least before they can file their notice of intending marriage. The young couple is crest-fallen and while they are not entirely sure of what the Registrar is saying, they have understood that they have to stay for longer in Bombay to marry each other.They somehow find temporary employment in Bombay and manage to make ends meet for 14 days. They go back to the Registrar’s office after 15 days. He tells them to give a notice of intending marriage. “You mean we will be married after this?” asks a tired Shaila. “No, you will have to come back after 14 days. This record will also be available to anyone who wants to inspect it and they can also file objections.”Shekar and Shaila are terrified. They know that their families will move heaven and Earth to ensure that they do not get married. However, their only hope is that their location will be unknown and that their families will look at cities in the south. They are not very sure; as two weeks of waiting would have been enough for their families to rule out other places in the Madras Presidency. Having no other choice, they give their notice of intending marriage.After two difficult weeks, they go back to the Registrar’s office. It is locked, and while they are waiting there, they hear complaints from another couple who travelled from Bengal for the same reason as them. A law student who was present there also remarked that one British man named Stephen had proposed a waiting period of five days before the notice for the sake of residence and five days after the notice, but his suggestion was overruled by others who felt that this would make it difficult for orthodox families and Indian parents who had to be given sufficient time to travel to other districts and mark their objections.Finally, an attendant comes and informs them that the Registrar is attending an important British Raj event in Satapur and will be back only after one week. On the verge of giving up, they decide to push through another week. They go back to the Registrar’s office in one week. They are surprised to see no objections have been raised. Shekar has asked three of his co-workers to appear as witnesses. It was difficult to get permission from their employer as they were temporary workers in the dock, but all four of them promised to work on their day off that week.Shekar and Shaila’s marriage is now solemnised in the Bombay Presidency under the 1872 Act. After receiving the document, Shekar notices that there is a spelling error in Shaila’s name. He immediately points it out. They receive a copy of the certificate with corrections in one week. However, the couple from Bengal weren’t as lucky. They both did not know how to read or write and this error in the certificate would make their lives difficult in the next 10 years. But today, all four of them are happy and relieved that their marriage is solemnised.Bombay in 1995Shekar and Shaila Banu want to get married. Shekar is living and working in Bombay and Shaila is from a village in Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district. As they are from different religions, there is stiff opposition to this union especially from Shaila’s father Basheer. There is no other option for them to solemnise their marriage except under the Special Marriage Act, 1954. Shekar sends Shaila a ticket and asks her to come to Bombay. With great difficulty, she reaches Bombay. Shekar picks her up at the station and they both go straight to the Registrar's office. Shekar tells her that he has filled in a notice intending marriage a month ago and that he is a resident of Bombay, so they can get married there.Real Life Scenario 1 – The Registrar notices that they are speaking Tamil with each other. He is immediately suspicious. He informs them that they both ought to have filed their notice intending marriage in person and that the notice filed by Shekar alone is not valid. He tells them that they should now apply for a fresh notice intending marriage. Shekar tells him that this was not informed to him when he applied for the notice. The Registrar tells him that he was transferred from Pune last week and is not responsible for the actions of his predecessor.Real Life Scenario 2 – The Registrar calls them to the desk. He informs them that while their notice has been accepted, an objection for the marriage has come in via telegram from Tamil Nadu from Basheer. Shaila is confused about how her father sent this objection, and the Registrar explains that their notice intending marriage was also pasted on the notice board outside the Tirunelveli Registrar’s office, as her permanent address is in Tirunelveli. The 35-hour window of her train journey would have been ample time to view the notice and also send a telegram. The Registrar informs them that unless the objection is dealt with, their marriage cannot be registered.Real Life Scenario 3 – Shekar and Shaila go to the Registrar’s office, but they see a group of their distant relatives there, no doubt answering their families’ frantic calls from Tamil Nadu to ensure that the marriage does not happen. They decide to go into hiding for some time and register it later. It takes over four months for their families to stop coming to the Registrar's office every morning. They make use of this time to get Shaila an identity proof with a Bombay address. Finally, when it is safe for them to go to the office, they go to solemnise the marriage. The Registrar informs them that they ought to have solemnised their marriage within three months of filing the initial notice. He also tells them that while he sympathises with their situation, his hands are tied. Shekar and Shaila file a fresh notice intending marriage, dreading the fact that this will now be publicly displayed outside this Registrar's office and the unpleasant events that will unfold.In the movie – They get married, the audience is happy, AR Rahman’s unforgettable background music is a popular ringtone and is sometimes heard in family courts during unfortunate episodes when people forget to place their phones in silent mode. **********The difficulty in getting married under the Special Marriage Act was also highlighted during the recent Supreme Court marriage equality case (Supriyo and Others vs the Union of India). Petitions were filed in the SC asking for marriages between queer couples to be solemnised under the Special Marriage Act. A petition was also filed by Utkarsh Saxena asking for the Act’s notice period requirement to be declared unconstitutional, given the difficulty that queer people will face from their birth families and other members of the public who cannot come to terms with queer marriages becoming a reality. The SC did not find in favour of marriage equality in the judgement. It is also unfortunate that the notice period requirement was not discussed in the judgement.We are now 151 years past the 1872 British Indian law that “permitted” marriage between two people from different religious backgrounds. With time, the process has only become more difficult. It will do well for all of us to ask why our Shekars and Shaila Banus face such a hostile process when the Shaktis and Karthiks (Madhavan and Shalini’s characters from Mani Ratnam’s movie Alaipayuthey) who come from religiously homogenous backgrounds can exchange garlands in a temple and come back by public transport to their respective homes as husband and wife..Chethana is a lawyer practising in family courts, trial courts, and in the Madras High Court. She also conducts POSH training sessions and assists in drafting policies for organisations through her initiative, The Safe Workplace Network.