There is this funny saying that marriages are made in heaven but wedding gifts are decided here on earth. Prashant Sharma and Niti Shree, a couple in the Indian city of Bangalore, who tied the knot on December 9, 2017 knew this.

No wonder they asked their guests not to show up with fancy gifts like bouquets, wall clocks, dinner sets or bed sheets. They simply stated their choice or gift — bitcoin. As unusual as this sounds, nearly all guests present honored their request by presenting them with Bitcoins as wedding gifts.

Why Bitcoin?

According to the groom,

“Suddenly this idea struck me. What if I bring a dash of technology in the conventional marriage set-up and accept bitcoin as gifts?” he recalled.

The following morning, the idea was discussed with Shree, also an entrepreneur and cryptocurrency enthusiast. Then, the couple tied up with Zebpay an Indian bitcoin exchange company to facilitate this idea.

The couple, both 28 years old who are founders of a digital startup firm, decided to make this request because they both believed in the cryptocurrency and what it can achieve in the future.

But Sharma and Shree say their interest in virtual currencies dates back to 2014 and they aren’t jumping onto the bandwagon because it’s in vogue.

“We believe that blockchain, the technology on which bitcoin is built, is going to be the next big thing. And we do want to take a bet on bitcoin and have a piece of that pie. So we thought of merging technology with gifting for the future. We explained it to our parents and they were very receptive.”

Government Factor

The Indian government and the country’s banking regulator are not comfortable with cryptocurrency, issuing at least three different warnings cautioning investors. There are even rumors of a ban on it.

But family and friends are not deterred by these. They still came up with the unconventional wedding gifts.