WHEN 28-year-old Poornima* returned to Delhi after a short stint of working as an interior designer in Mauritius, marriage was the last thing on her mind. She wanted to set up her own business. Singledom suited her fine. “My brother went behind my back and placed a matrimonial ad in a newspaper for me,” she laughs. “We got a flood of responses, mostly from men working in the Indian army. They would often send their responses by post.” This was in the 1980s when newspaper ads and relatives were playing matchmakers to a large extent. Of course, professional matchmakers were around at the time too, but they hadn’t upped their game to today’s level.
According to Saurabh Goswami, Managing Director of Ahmedabad-based Ultra Rich Match, there are about 5,000 registered matrimonial agencies in India currently. Online matrimony sites such as Shaadi.com, Bharat Matrimony, Jeevansathi, Vivaah.com, Royal Matrimony, The Second Shaadi, etc., add to the count. Most professional matchmakers and agencies operate like big businesses today—super-organised, digitally savvy, keen to extend their reach beyond Indian shores. “We are a team of 28 people based around the world—working from India, the US, London, and Dubai,” says Anuradha Gupta, Founder and CEO, Vows for Eternity. “Ours is a curated, confidential, global platform which caters to members ranging from 23 to 65 years of age…We are like an executive search firm you retain to outsource the best fit for life.”
この記事は Outlook の April 01, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Outlook の April 01, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
My Secular Mentor
A rare psychologist of Indian culture, Sudhir Kakar leaves behind seminal works that will have relevance for many generations
Battle of the Bahubalis
Gangsters in Bihar no longer enjoy the kind of dominance that they did in the 90s, but that has not kept them away from politics
Memories of Riots
Have frequent communal tensions changed the social fabric of Bihar?
Didi's Achilles Heel
Mamata Banerjee stays the course but her party, plagued by corruption charges, spins out of control
Memory Metamorphosis
What happened on March 14, 2007 in Nandigram? People still ask this question as they take part in the dance of democracy
Minority Report
He has not lost the Dhubri seat in Assam since 2009. Now he is fighting for political survival as Bengali Muslims look to favour the Congress
THE POWER OF PURPOSE
Doing good is good business as it transcends bottom lines and impacts lives positively, yielding profits that go beyond numbers.
CURRENT FARMING METHODS ARE EXACERBATING CLIMATE CHANGE
Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming (APCNF) project is supporting transition of 850,000 farmers covering 377,801 hectares of land and operating in 3730 villages. \"Natural farming is in harmony with nature. It is a holistic land management practice that leverages the power of photosynthesis in plants\", says Mr. T Vijay Kumar, a retired IAS officer, who is the Executive Vice Chairman of Rythu Sadhikara Samstha, a non-profit organization set up by the Andhra Pradesh government in 2014. Since 2016, this platform has been utilized to integrate and promote APCNF activities, aimed at fostering the overall development and empowerment of farmers. Excerpts from an interview with Mr T Vijay Kumar:
IN PURSUIT OF SUSTAINABILITY
Harshavardhana Gourineni, Executive Director, Amara Raja Energy & Mobility Ltd, in an interview shares how through its products and operations the company is helping reduce carbon footprints and meet SDGs. Excerpts:
COOLING NO MORE A LUXURY, BUT A NECESSITY
With the rise in demand of air conditioners due to heat stress, sustainable air conditioning is the way forward to bring relief to people as well as manage emissions