KOZHIKODE: While Kerala is yet to recover from the shock caused by the recent dowry-related deaths and harassments, Cherukulathoor village in Kozhikode is setting an example to the society by avoiding huge celebrations and rituals. Four marriages of close relatives have taken place in the last five years without thali (mangalsutra) and celebrations. All four couples are leading happy lives.

When Akhil, son of Ramachandran and Sarala, decided to get married to Lijuna, the only demand put forward by him was that the marriage should take place at a registrar's office without any celebration. Thus, the couple got married on January 12, 2005, at the Chaathamangalam registrar's office. The two got united without a mangalsutra, floral decorations, and not even a proper wedding photo. Only 20 people, including the couple, had attended the marriage. Akhil is currently working as a clerk in Kozhikode Kerala Bank.

Akhil's younger brother Nikhil, an engineer at BEML, also selected the same path as his brother. On 26 December 2009, he got hitched to Oormila at the same registrar's office in Chaathamangalam.

Inspired by the two marriages, Oormila's cousin Jyothish, the Sanitation Mission Coordinator in Malappuram, got married to Ramya in a similar manner. The marriage took place at Pratheeksha Special Home on January 9, 2012. Ramya is a Chemistry teacher in Malappuram Govt. College.

Nikhil's first cousin Gautham also got married in a similar married. He married Kuttiyadi native Anakha on August 20, 2020, at the registrar's office. Gautham is an official at the National Institute of Oceanography in Goa.