South Asians are More Polyamorous Than You Think
From the Mahabharata to modern-day open relationships, the subcontinent has always had space for more than one love.
When Zaara* moved to the Netherlands and Nina* (names anonymized) stayed in the U.S., their long-distance relationship felt suffocating. The unspoken pressure of always being accountable to each other and keeping up despite the miles began to wear them down. So they made a choice: they went open.
“There was obviously this initial period of insecurity, jealousy, and figuring out communication,” Nina*, 25, said. “But a lot of that was a process of self-exploration and work on oneself that we wanted and needed to do.”
Nina*, who grew up in Bengaluru and moved to the U.S. for high school and college, is among a new cohort of South Asians who are questioning one of their most fundamental assumptions: that love means an exclusive, romantic partnership. But while many subcontinental institutions today — family structures, government, capitalism, and mainstream media — hinge on the idea of monogamy, the region’s rich history actually goes far beyond one love.