All Episodes

December 25, 2025 49 mins

The marriage rate in this country has fallen nearly 60% in the last half century. So what’s motivating those of us still choosing to say I do? Anita ponders this question with the Hindu officiant who helped her build a ceremony that bridged the gap between her values and her dad's traditional desires. Plus, a comedian and queer ex-nun explains how she takes people from the place of "marriage is a dumpster fire" to a ceremony they're excited about. 

Meet the guests:

- Raja Gopal Bhattar is a consultant, author and officiant who Anita and her family worked with to design her wedding ceremony

- Kelli Dunham, a comedian, nurse and queer ex-nun who officiates weddings and funerals — and refers to herself as "queer secular clergy"

Read the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platform

Follow Embodied on Instagram 

Leave a message for Embodied

If you want to hear more of Satish Rao on Embodied:

Mixed (Parent Edition), where Anita talks to her parents about growing up mixed race

Pooped, where Satish gets to share his expertise as a gastroenterologist

Please note: This episode originally aired September 26, 2024.

Update: Raja Gopal Bhattar released an interactive memoir, “Queering Constellations: Mapping This Journey Called Life.” 

Mark as Played

Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Stuff You Should Know
My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.