&gt; I&#x27;ve met some people from India who spent a grand total of 2-3 hours doing what people in the West would call &quot;dating&quot; (spending time together; talking to each other) before deciding to marry them.<p>I am sure this happens widely and in many cases, the woman&#x27;s consent isn&#x27;t even taken, post-wedding is when the first conversation takes place. I agree this is unacceptable but in most metros, with less-conservative households, expectation is  that they take their time before having a final say.