A 49-year-old property dealer from Indore who was born as a female has married a woman after undergoing gender affirmation surgery. The bride is a friend of the groom’s sister.

Authorities in the financial capital of Madhya Pradesh registered the union under the Special Marriage Act and issued the couple a certificate.

The wedding pictures of the couple – Astitva and Ritu, whom her husband lovingly calls Aastha – have gone viral on social media. In one of the images, the family members of the newly-wed can be seen welcoming them by doing their ‘aarti’.

Astitva was earlier known as Alka, who never felt comfortable as a woman. After undergoing a gender reaffirmation surgery in Mumbai on their 47th birthday, Alka assumed the name of Astitva, said the property dealer.

He said, “A fictional character named Aastha had always been on my mind. I thought that whenever I got married, I would name my wife Aastha. The delight and joy I experience finding Aastha as my life partner cannot be expressed in words.” Aashta said she was overwhelmed with joy. “I met Astitva first through his sister. We got to know each other for the last five-six months and realised that we were made for each other,” she said.

Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Roshan Rai said that Astitva submitted the necessary medical documents along with the application for registration of marriage.

He said no one objected to the two tying the knot. Thus, the marriage was solemnised under the Special Marriage Act and a certificate was issued, said the ADM.

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