Renowned Turkish director and scriptwriter Ferzan Özpetek married his long-time partner Simone Pontesilli in Italy through a simple ceremony.

According to the Italian weekly tabloid magazine Chi's Wednesday issue, Özpetek and Pontesilli married at the council chamber in the Campidoglio Palace in Rome, where the couple has been living together for years. Around 15 close friends of the couple attended the ceremony.

The magazine also showed a photograph in which Özpetek and Pontesilli holding a marriage certificate while leaving the palace with a motorcycle.Published in 2015, Özpetek's book "Sen Benim Hayatımsın" (You Are My Life), which covers his 40 years in Rome, was dedicated to Pontesilli.

Italian Parliament had accepted a proposal on gay marriages in May after heated debates, which went into effect in July.