An Indian woman is set to get married in a grand ceremony, complete with guests, feasting and rituals ― but there will be no groom.
I never thought that it would be a big deal but I want people to understand that one can be single and be happy
Kshama Bindu
Kshama Bindu, 24, a digital creator from Vadodara, in western Gujarat state, is due to tie the knot with herself on June 11, in what is likely to be India’s first self-marriage or sologamy wedding.
Ms Bindu has not only splurged on her wedding finery and jewellery and decided on an elaborate menu for the three-day gala, but she has also written five vows for the wedding that will be attended by close friends and solemnised at a banquet hall.
She has also decided to have a two-week honeymoon in the tropical coastal state of Goa.
“I just want to be a bride like most women, get ready, wear the best wedding outfit and be photographed, but I don’t want to be a wife. And so, I am marrying myself,” Ms Bindu told The National.
“I want to give all the love in my heart to myself. I might fall in love with myself even more,” she said.
Ms Bindu will be wearing a dhoti-kurta, a traditional male garment consisting of a loincloth and tunic, for the henna ceremony, but she will be sticking to the nine-yard sari and lehenga, a heavy ornate skirt, for the main festivities.
“I want to be the best bride. I will include both male and female outfits for the ceremonies,” she said.
Ms Bindu, who refused to talk about her parents, said she got the idea of marrying herself while discussing matrimony with her friends.
“There was a conversation about marriage and I checked on the internet if one can marry oneself. I found two or three cases that encouraged me to take the decision,” she said.
Since sharing the news, she has gone viral on social media.
While many have criticised her for the decision, she says a lot of people are sending her positive messages and she wants to use her popularity to promote sologamy and “self-acceptance”.
“I never thought that it would be a big deal but I want people to understand that one can be single and be happy. With my marriage, I want them to look at the positive sides of self-love and accept the concept of marrying self,” she said.
Sologamy is rare but is gradually rising worldwide, although it is not recognised by the laws of any country or social norms, including in India where same-sex unions are also not legally recognised.
Brazilian model Cris Galera divorced herself in December after a 90-day-long sologamy marriage in which she read wedding vows to herself at a Catholic church.
Ms Galera, 33, from Sao Paulo said that she had found “someone special”.
Ms Bindu said that while she’s in love with herself, as tomorrow is uncertain, she won’t mind marrying another person in future, as Ms Galera did.
"But I won't divorce myself," she said.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
