'Love jihad': Is love bound by religion?

WorklifeIndia

Interfaith relationships in India have always faced the heat. Love remains difficult and at times dangerous across large sections of Indian society, which runs on patriarchy, caste, and religion.

New anti-conversion laws implemented by some states now make interfaith marriages even more difficult. Their apparent target is the so-called 'love jihad', a term used by radical Hindu groups to accuse Muslim men of converting Hindu women by marriage.

We speak with two interfaith couples, one married for over 20 years and the other for nearly two years, to hear their stories – and struggles – of love, faith and religious identity. They tell us what keeps them going, as we ask if love is bound by religion.

Presenter: Devina Gupta Contributors: Ranu Kulsreshtha and Asif Iqbal, co-founders, Dhanak of Humanity; Krutika Lele and Tamir Khan, musicians and interfaith couple

Image: A group of housewives and working professionals heading various voluntary organisations demonstrate demanding an anti-conversion law along the lines of Uttar Pradesh government's Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance, at Central Park, on December 10, 2020 in Jaipur, India. (Photo by Himanshu Vyas/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)