A majority of urban Indians intend to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year

With Valentine’s Day this week, recent YouGov Survey found that a majority of urban Indians (53%) intend to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year. Those who are married were most likely to say they will celebrate (at 57%), while singles were most likely to say the opposite (46%).

Among the generations, millennial were by far most likely to say they will celebrate the festival of love- at 46%

Almost one in five urban Indians (18%) also say that they would be open to celebrating Valentine’s Day with someone they’d been dating for less than a month. Just as many would wait for 2-5 months (18%), one in eight (12%) between 6-11 months, and 22% would celebrate after at least a year of dating.

Comparatively, they were more likely to say ‘I love You’ (26%), meet each other’s friends (24%) or meet each other’s parents/ close family (19%) than celebrate Valentine’s day within a month of seeing someone.

YouGov’s data revealed that a considerable proportion of urban Indians are open to having sex within a year (36%) or few years of dating (13%), as opposed to 27% who think it is appropriate to get intimate with a partner only once you’re engaged or married.

Men were more likely than women to believe in pre-marriage sex within a year of dating (43% vs 30%), while women are stronger advocates of sex after engagement or marriage (33% vs 23%).

YouGov data also shows that half of urban Indians believe gifts are an important part of Valentine’s Day, while 36% claim they would be upset if their partner forgot about Valentine's Day altogether. Interestingly, men were slightly more likely than women to agree with both these views.

It is also interesting to note their views on finding love in this digital age. While two in five men say they find it easy to find love through social media or dating apps, fewer women tend to agree with this view (31%).

Methodology: YouGov Surveys: Serviced provides quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences in multiple markets. This study was conducted online in January 2024, with a national sample of 1,007 urban Indian residents, using a questionnaire designed by YouGov. Data figures have been weighted by age, gender, and ethnicity to be representative of all adults in India (18 years or older). Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Serviced.