Going That 'Extra' Mile For Love And Intimacy

In recent years, dating apps and evolving norms have triggered a relationship revolution among urban Indians - notably through a blurring of the boundaries between preferences, lifestyles, and curiously, fidelity as well. Here's what some insiders have to share about these shifting trends

- GEETIKA SACHDEV

Prachi Dev*, a 34-year-old event manager from Mumbai dominates the boardroom. However, her bedroom lacks the spark and excitement she has always yearned for. A Bengali Kshatriya, she entered an arranged marriage a decade ago due to pressure from her conservative parents. There was neither love nor any sexual compatibility with her 37-year-old husband right from the start. But she stayed on just to appease her family.

Four years ago, Dev joined an extramarital dating app at the insistence of a few close friends. Initially, she was apprehensive of taking this step but with time, she began to enjoy the attention of attractive men. Two years ago, she met a 29-year-old photographer from her city who fulfilled both her emotional and physical needs. As a result, Dev's happiness knows no bounds. In a patriarchal society like India where marriage has been considered sacrosanct and monogamous relationships are the order of the day, it is a sea change to witness extramarital relationships being normalised like never before.

Shortly after France-based extramarital dating app, Gleeden, was launched in India in 2017, it attracted more than 1.2 lakh users. Today, the number stands at over 2 million, which includes married people and those who have been in committed relationships for a while. While the majority of users hail from Tier 1 cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kochi, Gurugram and Ahmedabad, Tier 2 cities have also experienced substantial growth. The demographics highlight 65 per cent of Gleeden's members being men between 30 and 50 years old, while 35 per cent of its user base comprises women in the age bracket of 25 to 35 years.