Love stories often start with simple meetings, but with time, some relationships emerge that challenge boundaries, religions and society’s thinking. The story of Tuaha Sultan from Karachi, Pakistan and Mavin Alphons from Kottayam, Kerala is also similar. Despite being from different countries, different religions, different languages and different food habits, both of them strengthened their relationship and faced every difficulty together.
Tuaha and Mavin first met in the year 2015 in UK. Both were studying there. At that time, a cultural program named Global Festival was organized in the university, in which students used to present their respective countries and cultures. Tuaha was part of the dance performance at the event, while Mavin was among the students who started the society. Tuaha tells that a special bond was felt between the two in their first meeting itself. Gradually their friendship deepened and they became very close to each other. From participating in university programs to hanging out, both of them spent a lot of time together. This friendship later turned into love. When Tuaha poured out his feelings to Mavin, their relationship became even more serious.
Was this not easy for the family?
Although this relationship was very natural for them, it was not easy to convince the families. When Mavin’s mother came to know that her daughter was dating a Pakistani Muslim boy, she immediately went to meet Tuaha. Initially he was very worried, but after meeting Tuaha, his perspective changed. Tuaha says that Mavin’s mother liked him in the first meeting itself, which made the path ahead a little easier. Still, relatives and many people of the society did not accept this relationship.
Some people even stopped talking, but both of them got the support of many members of their families, which gave them courage. Because of this support, they took their relationship forward strongly. After understanding each other and living together for many years, both of them got married in the year 2018. They made their marriage respectful of both religions and cultures.
In UK, they performed both church wedding and Nikah, while in Pakistan, Walima ceremony was held. However, getting a church wedding done was not easy. Many priests had refused to conduct marriages of Muslim and Christian couples. Despite this, both of them did not give up and finally completed the marriage as per their choice. After marriage his life changed completely. Now two different cultures and traditions started living together in his house. Tuaha speaks Urdu, while Mavin’s mother tongue is Malayalam, so both of them converse in English. The choice of food is also completely different.
Mavin likes idli-sambar, while Tuaha likes Pakistani dishes like nihari and paya, but they never let these different habits become a problem. On the contrary, both of them made it their strength. They started adopting each other’s food, festivals and traditions. All the festivals of Eid, Christmas and Onam are celebrated with full enthusiasm in their house. Not only this, whenever they get a chance, they also participate in the festivals of other communities.
Even now people raise questions
Tuaha says that this relationship gave him an opportunity to look at life from a new perspective. They understood each other’s culture and learned many new things. Both of them often create new fusion dishes by mixing their respective foods, in which a unique combination of Malabar and Sindhi taste is seen.
Later, both of them also started an Instagram page on social media named WhereWeBelongTM. On this platform, they share their everyday life and experiences of interfaith marriage with people. He gets a lot of love and support there, but at the same time he also has to face hateful comments at times.
Tuaha says that some people start judging him without knowing his story. Many people raise questions about his religion, country and identity. Even their region and culture is targeted. But despite all this, both of them did not let their relationship and love weaken.
Mavin has gone to Pakistan twice so far. Tuaha tells that initially he was afraid about how Mavin would be treated there, but people in Pakistan loved him a lot. Whereas Tuaha has not been able to come to India yet. His visa application has been pending for the last one year. He had planned to visit Delhi, Mumbai, Agra and Kerala in August 2026, but due to the new visa restrictions implemented after April 2025, his application has not been approved yet.
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