As much as India seems to give importance to marriage and all its rituals, apparently, Indian couples are quite adept at breaking those vows by engaging in extra-marital affairs.
A new report by a dating app has revealed that there has been a sharp increase in non-monogamous relationships in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. One tier-3 city of barely 2 lakh population has topped the ranking of Indian cities with the most extramarital affairs.
But is this something to be concerned about? Why could such relationships be seeing a rise?
Which Region In India Has The Most Extra-Marital Affairs?
Dating app, Ashley Madison, which is geared exclusively for individuals seeking extra-marital relationships, has come out with new user data for June 2025. According to this data, the app saw a surge of activity from Kanchipuram, a town in Tamil Nadu, that even overtook urban cities like Delhi and Mumbai.
Kanchipuram, in just one year, has seen a leap from 17th place in the 2024 list to the 1st rank in the 2025 list of Indian districts with the most affairs.
Delhi-NCR is not far behind, though, with Central Delhi taking second place and other regions of Delhi, including South West, East, South, West, and North West, and even nearby cities like Gurgaon, Noida, and Ghaziabad taking various positions in the top 20 rankings of the list.
Mumbai, interestingly, didn’t even make it to the top 20, whereas Jaipur, Raigarh, Kamrup, and Chandigarh have made appearances on the list.
Read More: Here’s How Much You Can Pay To Attend A Fake Wedding In Delhi With No Groom Or Bride
Paul Keable, chief strategy officer at Ashley Madison, commenting on these findings, said, “This data highlights a striking trend—India is leading the way in redefining modern relationships with more than half of surveyed adults admitting to infidelity. India is already ranked sixth among our global markets, and we anticipate it climbing even higher by the end of the year. These numbers suggest the growing acceptance of non-monogamy.”
Reports have also observed what the possible reasons behind this trend could be. These include:
- Increased internet penetration in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities: The accessibility of internet, and dating apps like Ashley Madison in smaller towns like Kanchipuram could be a significant factor. Apparently, numbers suggest that these apps are becoming more prevalent in these areas, and thus the number of people joining them and even using them might show an increase from previous years
- Changing social attitudes: A shift in social attitudes and behaviours in small towns, as well as the desire for anonymity and a fast-paced lifestyle among big city residents, could be reasons why extramarital affairs are seeing a rise. Stressful jobs and willingness to seek outside connections or even explore unconventional relationships could be factors playing into this.
- Desire for privacy and discretion: While people in the big cities like Mumbai and Delhi have more options to pursue relationships outside of marriage, those in small towns have to deal with close-knit communities that don’t allow for a lot of secrecy. This could lead to people turning to online platforms that would allow them a more private and discreet way to explore extramarital relations.
It’s also important to remember, however, that the data Ashley Madison provided is based on users of its own app, and doesn’t necessarily reflect the behaviour of Kanchipuram’s overall population. Further, the dating app itself hasn’t provided a detailed explanation for its rankings.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: Moneycontrol, The Economic Times, TOI
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This post is tagged under: Extra-Marital Affairs, Extra-Marital Affairs india, Extra-Marital Affairs rise, infidelity, infidelity india, cheating, cheating relationship, ashley madison, ashley madison india, ashley madison app, ashley madison india report, ashley madison news
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