These are Indonesian Celebrities who have had a secret marriage, from Ahmad Dhani - Mulan Jameela to Lesti - Rizky Billar who caused a stir

Kapanlagi.com - Writing team: Aretha Naurah Aureliaputrie, Anak Agung Anindita, Syahla Aina Maghfirah
Editor: Louvina Gita

Marriage is a sacred and joyous celebration for both the bride and groom, as well as their families and relatives. However, marriage is also the union of two families that are legally bound.

According to the Republic of Indonesia Law Number 1 of 1974 concerning Marriage, article 2 paragraphs (1) and (2), a marriage is considered legal if it is carried out in accordance with the religious or belief laws of each couple and must be recorded according to the applicable laws and regulations. Based on these paragraphs, as long as a marriage is not recorded, even if it has been sanctioned by religion, it will not be legally valid.

However, in Indonesian society, the term 'secret marriage' or 'religious marriage' is also popular. A secret marriage, according to KBBI, is a marriage that is only witnessed by a religious official and a witness, without going through the Office of Religious Affairs (KUA), according to Islamic law that is valid.

Due to the absence of KUA intervention as a law enforcement agency, people who have a secret marriage are not legally registered and therefore do not have legal force. So, even though a secret marriage is valid according to religion, the absence of official documents makes the married couple unable to access certain facilities offered by the government.

Until now, there are still many people who choose to have a secret marriage before finally registering their marriage officially. This also happens among celebrities in the homeland. So, who are the Indonesian celebrities who have had a secret marriage?

1. Ahmad Dhani's Shocking Confession

credit: instagram.com/mulanjameela1

One of the celebrity couples who are quite famous for their secret marriage news are Ahmad Dhani and Mulan Jameela. The singer couple who have been officially married since 2009 were known to have had a secret marriage in 2006, as admitted by Ahmad Dhani on his own talk show program. The Dewa 19 frontman admitted to having married Mulan Jameela before officially divorcing Maia Estianty, even though they had divorced religiously.

Another celebrity who is quite well-known for their secret marriage news is Rhoma Irama, especially when he secretly married Angel Lelga who was only 19 years old at the time in 2005. Even Angel Lelga was willing to leave her family to marry the King of Dangdut because she was not given permission.

Before being officially married in Jember in 2008, Dewi Perssik and Aldi Taher had a secret marriage first. According to Aldi Taher, secret marriage does not have a negative connotation. In fact, he understands if people choose to have a secret marriage in this day and age because of the corona virus. In addition, he wants to avoid adultery by getting married secretly.

The marriage of Vicky Prasetyo and Kalina Ocktaranny, who are now divorced, began with a secret marriage in early 2021. The beginning of their confession of their secret marriage started during a livestream of their wedding where viewers suspected the legality of the marriage because there was no marriage certificate. Finally, Kalina Ocktaranny openly admitted that her marriage to Vicky Prasetyo was a secret marriage on her own YouTube channel.

In 2014, Tata Janeeta married an Iranian man named Mehdi Zati. An interview at Trans Building in 2017 revealed that the marriage was done secretly. This was due to the difficulty of arranging a marriage certificate between different nationalities. Finally, Tata's mother suggested that her daughter have a legal religious marriage first, approved by her father.

2. Reasons for Having a Secret Marriage

credit: instagram.com/lestykejora

Another celebrity known to have had a secret marriage is Kiwil and Venti Figianti. The marriage was conducted secretly in 2020. However, in 2021 and 2022, the illegal marriage status was acknowledged by Kiwil himself.

Until now, Kiwil remains firm in not giving more details about the exact location and time of the marriage. Although it was initially denied because it was said that a secret marriage is a marriage without a guardian, their marriage was still carried out only religiously, so it is still considered secret.

Another hot news about secret marriage is the marriage of Rizky Billar and Lesti Kejora. They officially got married in August 2021 as broadcasted on television. However, an exclusive Indosiar event revealed that they had already had a secret marriage in April. This was also confirmed by Rey Mbayang, a friend and witness of Lesti-Billar's secret marriage.

There are various reasons why artists choose to have a secret marriage first. For example, the couple Ahmad Dhani and Mulan Jameela chose to have a secret marriage before being sanctioned because at that time, Ahmad Dhani had not legally divorced Maia Estianty even though they had separated religiously. On the other hand, the couple Rhoma Irama and Angel Lelga had a secret marriage because it was not approved by Angel's parents.

But unlike Rhoma Irama and Angel Lelga, the secret marriage of Tata Janeeta and Mehdi Zati was approved, even recommended and sanctioned by Tata's parents. There are also couples like Kiwil and Venti Figianti who had a secret marriage because it was what they wanted, as well as to protect their privacy.

3. Public Opinion on Celebrity Secret Marriages

According to a survey conducted by the Kapanlagi.com team, the reasons mentioned above are also understood by many people. In addition to the reasons mentioned above, when asked why celebrities choose to have a secret marriage, most of the public's answers are to avoid adultery because even though it is not legal, secret marriage is recognized by religion so it is considered halal.

Nevertheless, there are some answers that mention secret marriage as a way to seek fame or because they are tempted by married life. They also say that secret marriage is more advantageous for the husband and detrimental to the wife and children.

Public opinion on secret marriage is mixed. Some people feel that whoever gets married in any way is not their business. Others feel that secret marriage has more disadvantages, especially when it comes to legal matters. But there are also many who feel that secret marriage is allowed, especially when it comes to celebrities who often have no privacy from the public.

"Regarding secret marriage among celebrities, my assumption about their reasons for having a secret marriage is privacy," wrote a respondent with the initial S when asked about the reasons why celebrities choose to have a secret marriage.

4. Pros and Cons

When asked if self-marriage would last, 48.1% of survey respondents said they didn't know. About 6.3% said yes for sure, and 25.3% said no for sure.

However, a total of 20.3% of respondents said that the longevity of self-marriage depends on the compatibility of the couple.

If marriage is based on love, their marriage will last. If it is done only for fleeting attraction and publicity, it can be guaranteed that the marriage will not last long.

"It's okay, as long as it's approved by the family and not a forbidden relationship. Maybe they choose to have a self-marriage so as not to sin with adultery, but it's up to them how they want it, as long as it doesn't harm others," wrote respondent S.B when asked about the view of self-marriage among celebrities.

So, that's self-marriage among Indonesian artists. What do you think, KLovers? What is your view on self-marriage among artists?

(kpl/lou)