All In The V

OUTLOOK-MOODS SEX SURVEY
All In The V
Not tonight, honey? India finds a middle ground between the sheets.

Who would have thought that twelve years after ourgroundbreaking survey of the sexual habits and attitudes of urban Indian marriedcouples, we would find that Indians today are having less sex, despite a farmore open and liberal sexual environment? It’s just one of the manyeye-opening findings that turned up in the Outlook-Moods Sex Survey 2008.

The frequency has come down, as compared with 1996, and so has time spent onforeplay. All work and no (fore)play, it would seem, has made Jack a duller boy.More couples in full-time jobs, longer working hours, battling traffic jams onthe daily commute, worrying about pink slips and home loans and terrorism—thetypical pressures of life in the city today have no doubt taken their toll onthe romantic life of urban couples. Fortunately, the scenario isn’t entirelygloomy. Couples may be more pressed for time and energy, but they’re tryingeven harder to squeeze all the fun they can out of life, and they’re more opento experimenting. In 2008, as our survey reveals, there was a lot morespontaneous sex, early morning sex and oral sex; and greater adventurousness intrying out new positions.

Which city is the most active in oral sex? What is the biggest turn-on forwomen—six-pack abs or a handsome face? What percentage of couples have neverhad an orgasm? In what way have attitudes towards pre-marital sex andhomosexuality changed in the 21st century India? Read on to discover the manyfascinating, illuminating—and surprising—findings of the Outlook-MoodsSex Survey.


Are you and your spouse satisfied with the frequency of sex?

	Male	Female
I prefer more	24	14
Spouse prefers more	11	28
Both are happy with current frequency	59	54

12 times a month is how frequently couples now have sex, down from 14 times a month in 1996

Frequency preference
	1996	2008
I prefer more often than my spouse	14	19
My spouse prefers more often than me	12	19
Both are happy with current frequency	68	56


Which features in your spouse arouse you sexually?

Respondents: men

Height		5
Hair		12
Eyes		19
Face		36
Breasts		52
Waist		20
Buttocks		18
Slimness		12
Overall positive		25


43% of Kochi men are aroused by a positive attitude; 50% of women in Ahmedabad like a muscular physique.

Respondents: women

Height		5
Eyes		16
Face		31
Muscular body		37
Overall positive		28
Waist		9
Buttocks		6
Slimness		8


What is your most preferred time for having sex?

	Male	Female
Early morning	29	15
Late morning	6	4
Afternoon	6	4
Evening	5	4
Night	83	90

Preference for morning sex has doubled for men; 59% of men in Ahmedabad prefer it

Overall Time Preference
	1996	2008
Early morning	14	22
Late morning	4	5
Afternoon	11	5
Evening	3	5
Night	55	87

Men still initiate most of the sex. ‘Pre-decided’ sex isn’t frequent. Spontaneous sex has risen from 13% in 1996 to 22% in 2008.

Who initiates sex?

Self		29
Partner		34
Both		37

Is it pre-decided?

Frequency	1996	2008
Always	19	20
Sometimes	43	58
Never	13	22

How long does it last?

Till both of us are satisfied		45
Till my partner is satisfied		14
Till I am satisfied		21
Not very long		20

Mumbai has the highest percentage (65%) of people who tried oral sex, while Lucknow has the lowest (23%).

Have you ever tried oral sex?

	1996	2008
Tried	46	46
Never	43	54
No response	11	-


52% of women perform oral sex at the man’s request while 40% of men do it at their partner’s insistence.

How frequently do you practise oral sex?

	1996	2008
Always	14	16
Sometimes	39	57
Rarely	21	27
Never tried	18	-
Rest no response

Despite more people having oral sex, 43 per cent think it is dirty and 40 per cent think it is harmful.

Who is more interested in oral sex?
Both		42
Spouse		32
Me		26

Practised more by men, masturbation is highest in Kochi (80%) and in the age group 20-25 years.

Do you indulge in masturbation?

	Men	Women
Never Indulged	35	58
Indulged/indulging	50	21
No response	15	21

How frequently do you masturbate?

At least 3 times a day		7
1-2 times a day		16
1-3 times a week		25
Less frequently		52

More males (17%) than females (6%) are in favour of multi-partner sex, most in the below-25 age group.

Do you favour multi-partner sex?

	Men	Women
Yes	17	6
No	83	94

Did you indulge in multi-partner sex?

Yes		8
No		92

Who initiated?

	Men	Women
Myself	45	19
My spouse	16	35
Others	12	23
Never indulged	28	23

Overall 16% did not experience an orgasm. But more people are having multiple orgasms.

How many orgasms do you experience when having sex?

	Men	Women
No orgasm	11	23
One orgasm	46	59
Two orgasms	30	10
Three or more orgasms	14	8


23% of women don’t have an orgasm, up from 9% in 1996. 33% of women in Lucknow don’t have an orgasm.

Which activities do you perform after sexual intercourse?

Activity after sex	1996	2008
Hold each other	40	42
Fondle each other	21	29
Kiss body parts	15	29
Read books/watch TV	27	5
Clean up	41	28
Go to sleep	34	30

Couples who watch TV or read books after sex have become inclined towards caring activities like kissing.

Do you favour sex education in schools and colleges?

	Men	Women
Yes	60	48
No	40	52

More men than women are in favour of homosexuality.

Have you indulged in homosexuality?

	Men	Women
Yes	14	7
No	86	93

Should homosexuality be legalised?

Yes		17
No		57
Don’t know/ can’t say		26

Average foreplay time is highest in Kochi at 12 minutes; 8 per cent in Calcutta do not indulge in foreplay. In every city, foreplay is down.

How much time do you spend on foreplay?

5-10 minutes		40
11-20 minutes		24
21-30 minutes		10
More than 30 minutes		4
No foreplay		5
Less than 5 minutes		17
Average time on foreplay 11 minutes


80% say that society is more liberal in discussing sex, but nearly 50% refrained from talking about it.

Do people in your social circle talk freely about sex?
	Men	Women
Yes	57	45
No	38	46

How frequently do you have sex with your spouse?

Frequency	Male	Female
Daily	18	12
5-6 times a week	18	9
3-4 times a week	29	19
Twice a week	19	21
Once a week	8	17
Once in two weeks	4	7
Once in a month	2	8
Less frequently	2	7

Average frequency per week

With kid	3.48	2.61
No kid	4.33	3.16
Joint family	3.87	2.70
Nuclear family	3.65	2.65

Missionary continues to be the most preferred position, a preference for new positions was also seen in 2008.

Which position do you practise on most occasions?

Position	1996	2008
Man on top	79	78
Woman on top	17	33
Lying sideways	14	21
Standing	7	10
Sitting	11	10
Rear entry	9	8
Anal sex	4	3

Nearly one-fourth of the respondents have had sex before marriage.

Are you in favour of pre-marital sex?

Yes		24
No		76
Of those who are in favour:
Men		86
Women		14


61% of pre-marital sex was with a boy/girl friend, the highest in Ahmedabad (88%) and Mumbai (81%).

Did you have sex with a person other than your spouse before marriage?

	All	Male	Women
Yes	23	42	3
No	77	58	97

57 per cent of people who had premarital sex had it with two or more individuals.

How many people did you have sex with before marriage?

One person			43
2-4 persons			37
5-8 persons			9
9 or more persons			11

How old were you when you first had sex before marriage?

Below 21 years 65			65
22-25 years 30			30
26 years or more			5

All figure in percentage

Methodology Outlook-GfK Mode conducted an opinion poll on the sexual habits and attitude towards sex of married couples. The study was conducted in eight centres across the country—Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Kochi. For purposes of comparison we have drawn samples from the same survey centres as in the 1996 survey. A total of 1,640 respondents participated in the survey. In each city, 100 males and 100 females in the age group 20-45 years from SEC A, B and C were interviewed with the help of a close-ended questionnaire.