She had no choice, but to accept her husband's mistress and live as a semi-servant in his house. The custom of arranged marriages in India has survived migration and modernization remaining central to the fabric of society. Although no exact figures are available, some 95 percent of all marriages in India are arranged, even among those in the educated middle class. Many Indians contend that arranged marriages are more successful than marriages in the West, particularly given the latter's staggering divorce rates. Romantic love does not necessarily lead to a good marriage, and often fails once the passion dissipates, they argue.
Real love flows from a properly arranged union between two individuals.
With most unions between individuals from the same background, the arranged marriage reflects and reinforces the social,economic, geographic and historical diversity of India itself. More like a continent than a country, India is made up of 14 states,with as many languages, thousands of dialects, three major religions, hundreds of sub-religions, an outlawed but still practiced caste system amongst Hindus, and an informal class and economic differentiation amongst Christians and Muslims. For the female, ownership changes hands from father to husband to son. A girl is marriageable from age 18, and parents get worried if she remains unmarried past 24 or 25. It is acceptable for a boy to remain unmarried till his late 20s, but after that questions are asked about his desirability as a husband.