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People & Their
Problems
New
Delhi, 27 September 2008
Matrimonial
Websites
MARRIAGES
NO LONGER MADE IN HEAVEN
By Radhakrishna
Rao
Time was when marriages used to be held at
the bidding of the parents without giving an opportunity to the eligible
youngsters to understand each other. Family pressure, social considerations, caste
and community affiliations as well as astro factors including horoscope
matching used to be the prime factors in arranging the marriage.
In addition, relatives, priests and
astrologers used to contribute to match making at the behest of the parents. In
the end, the boys and girls had no option but to fall in line. Without doubt,
compatibility and mutual liking of the partners were never into reckoning while
bringing the youngsters on to the platform of wedlock.
However, in the context of the fast-changing
social dynamics and a growing urge among the younger generation to find a
“proper and compatible match”, parents are fast losing their clout in the matrimonial
scenario in India.
Thanks to the internet revolution, the smart and single are now regularly
“meeting each other” in the cyber superhighway and freely exchanging their
photos and backgrounders with a list of their “likes” and “dislikes”.
At the click of the mouse, they get to know
each other much better than in “face-to-face meeting”. Moreover, being
invisible to a large extent, they have no “inhibitions” in exchanging views and
opinions about what they expect from their potential life partners. In response
to the fast-changing Indian matrimonial scenario, a number of matrimonial
websites offering a range of services to the youngsters, keen on finding
soul-mate of choice, have emerged over the past five years.
Among these are: Bharat Matriomony.com, Jeevansathi.com,
Shaadi.com and Times Matri.com. Points out Rajat Gandhi, the Business head of
Times Matri.com: “Active communications between people, multilingual versions
and a new interactive medium are foraying successfully into the market. Moreover,
the single status and tech savy facet of individuals is pushing the younger
generation towards online portals”.
In
order to give a down-to-earth edge to their online matrimonial services, many
marriage portals are organizing periodic meets of young men and women who have
registered themselves for finding a life partner in different locations of the
country. In addition, many marriage websites also offer value-added services
like mobile searches and offline search centres.
Against this backdrop, it is little
surprising that nearly half of the internet users are into online matrimony
services. Facts and figures go to
suggest that online matrimonial searcher has come to establish itself among the
main “online activities”. Interestingly, India online survey carried out by
Juxt Consult says that matrimonial search is the 13th most preferred
online activity among the Indian
surfers.
The most significant piece of information
revealed in this survey was that one in five users of matrimonial portals was a woman. ”If you are looking for a
partner than it is best to hit matrimonial sites rather than social networking
platforms or chat rooms” says Dr Pallavi B Gillani, relationship counselor at
relationship forever.com.
Apparently, the growing number of most popular
matrimonial websites offers a new, exciting and refreshing landscape to
youngsters to get hooked as a first step towards entering into a life long bond
of wedding. An overwhelming majority of the users of marriage portals are clear
in their perception that they are hassle free, non- intrusive, convenient and comfortable.
According to social scientists, matrimonial sites whose numbers in the country
exceed 100 have engineered a remarkable social change by offering instant
linkage and unheard of opportunities to choose a life partner.
Bridgette Colaco of Southern Illinois
University, for one points out: “the internet offers India’s urban youth the opportunity
to meet each other and converse without fear”. In particular, Colaco believes
that it is an empowering experience for
women to key into the matrimonial website. “It gives the women—the choice to
make friends from members of the opposite sex”, she quips.
Extraordinary reach and instant
connectivity offered by the marriage portals make matrimony a far more smoother
process in comparison to the conventional method of finding a life partner,
wherein the parents play not only a crucial but a determining role. More
importantly, the phenomenon of online marriage has broken the barriers of caste
and community with nearly half of the youngsters saying that they are not
averse to inter-caste marriages if their chosen partners fulfill their
aspirations. Of course, precautions should be taken of getting the honest
background by doubly checking the facts.
There are occasions when long forgotten
friends and relatives separated by geographical distance and lapse of time come
face to face on the matrimonial portals. For instance, Sahana, a software
engineer working in Bangalore found a life
partner in Sohan, an electronics engineer pursuing his MBA studies in Europe. Subsequently, it turned out that the families of
Sahana and Sohan are in fact, relatives who were out of touch with each other
for many years.
“The internet brings limitless
possibilities. It allows you to meet a large number of people, offers anonymity
by breaking down the barriers like caste, put men and women on equal footing
and does not carry any of the ignominies of the old system “says Anupam Mittal,
Chief Managing Director of People Group under whose aegis shaadi.com operates.
Matrimonial sites make money mainly through
subscription to the package of services they offer. Some wedding portals go
beyond their original mandate to lend a helping hand in organizing the marriage
including the location and venue of the
marriage, purchase of gold and sarees etc. Of course, this service too comes at
a price. Well who can now say that marriages are made in heaven.—INFA
(Copyright,
India News & Feature Alliance)
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