The troubles of an Indian Engineer is often mentioned with a hint of sarcasm in trolls. The concept of arranged marriage, on the other hand, is a whole different story altogether. The life of Indian guy changes when he turns 25 (I think it’s 23 for a girl) when the parents who have said no to love so far start looking for a bride for the poor guy. Almost forbidden from finding love, the guy is now paraded like a commodity in the marriage market and his wedding profile provides a complete list of specifications for the product sold.
The case is this. The ones who are outgoing, modern and smart manage to find partners. The ones who wait (not for the lack of trying) have a few constraints. There are 1001 castes (random number, maybe more) in the country and each has a restriction that they marry within the caste unless you find someone to date. The problem is that while the average guy struggles so hard to establish a career, the good ones (not necessarily by looks) are taken.
A person has to take his life decision based on a horoscope and a picture. A partner is shortlisted based on just a picture. We all know what we do with photographs, don’t we? This was a funny article on how pictures are fabricated. I understand that the first spark comes due to looks but we fail to realise that the spark continues because of what lies within. (I’m no different)
Career and family life are a parallel track said, my dad. He added that the smart man carries both in parallel and does not put one on hold for the other. Well, there is hardly anyone now who does that. Even the ones in love postpone marriage to settle down (sometimes break up in the process). So there is one question that every person in their mid-twenties fear and that question is ‘Beta/Beti, Shaadi kab karoge?’ which is at the same level as ‘Why did you do engineering?’
(This story is published in association with A Voice For The Everyman)
