Can online meetings result in happily ever afters? Are people really serious of meeting their life partners? Can you trust? We get into the skin of the growing trend of finding online matches.
Priti is an executive with a MNC, in Gurgaon. She has six days a week office and a seven-figure salary that she would not want to give up for anything in the world. “I have worked hard to reach where I have, why should I give up?” she says. Trouble is that she is reaching 30 and everyone around her wan’ts her to get married. “I haven’t found anyone yet.” She laments. “Some friend has suggested online matrimonial portals but I am not sure if I will find a decent match there. I think it’s just time pass.”
Rajat,29, working in an advertising company in Mumbai says, “I have been looking for a bride on a portal for almost two years. But nothing happened. A lot of girls show interest but there is no response to even a hello.”
Online dating and matrimony has caught up like a wildfire in India. With a growing middle class and rising individuality, more people are finding that the matches are not only made in heaven but also on websites. It’s fast, easy, personal and secure. You can find, browse profiles, see pictures, even match horoscopes and send interests. Then wait for the other person to respond. There is a decline option as well to politely decline someone’s ‘phantasy’ over you, without actually meeting in person. “It’s virtual. It’s so much less embarrassing. And you forget about it next day because everyone comes online with the same mindset,”says Asha.
With such dating sites being easily available, many people tend to take advantage of them as well. With a mindset of finding a quick fix for date and or just ‘pataofying’ the girl, some people can be dubious, so everyone should be careful. Radhika was duped by a guy who posed all the handsome pictures and sweet talked into meeting her. She found out he was just someone totally different.
Websites have come up for people with disabilities, specific communities, divorced and widowed people, who can also find love the second time. Dating websites and applications have started for sexual minorities as well. And their rising popularity only shows that whether you find love or not, you want to try them once, fefore you get hitched for lifetime.
Online portals are also coming up in a big way as the sponsors of prime time youth and television shows. This shows their growing potential. With a leading website claiming to have made two million matches online, this is then just the beginning.
