Having tied the knot four times himself, controversial Indian-origin writer Salman Rushdie doesn't think marriage is necessary.

Attacking the institution of marriage, Rushdie said he did not believe in it and that women rushed to the altar only because they wanted to wear a 'wedding dress'.

The author of The Satanic Verses has been married four times, most recently to Padma Lakshmi [Images], from whom he split last year.

"It's strange, given that I've been married four times, but I actually don't think marriage is necessary," Salman said in an interview for Elle magazine.

"Girls like it, especially if they've never been married before -- it's the dress. Girls want a wedding, they don't want a marriage. If only you could have weddings without marriages."

Rushdie also disclosed that he and Lakshmi had marriage counseling, but without success.