Love in the Valley: How newly-wed 2015 IAS toppers Tina Dabi and Aamir-ul-Shafi Khan were struck by cupid

In a remarkable story, 2015 IAS toppers Aamir-ul-Shafi Khan and Tina Dabi on Saturday solemnised their relationship in the Valley. The couple chose one of Kashmir’s most famous tourist destinations – Pahalgam – as their wedding venue.

The couple tied the knot on Saturday at Pahlgam Club on Saturday. Dabi, along with her parents and relatives, arrived in Pahalgam on Friday. After the wedding ceremony, the guests and the couple drove to Devepora Mattan – Khan’s ancestral village in South Kashmir’s Anantnag.

Being from diverse backgrounds wasn’t a hindrance to the two.  While Dabi is from Delhi, Khan is from Jammu and Kashmir. The couple fell in love when the two had met at the department of personnel and training office in Delhi for the felicitation function on May 11, 2015.

The genius fell for the guy she beat to top place – Athar Aamir-ul-Shafi Khan. The two met during the felicitation ceremony in North Block’s DoPT office and by the evening he was knocking at her door. Dabi was quoted saying TOI: “Uske liye pehli nazar mein pyaar ho gaya (For him, it was love at first sight).”

Dabi added that she was floored by his wit and charm and added: “I thank Aamir every day for his perseverance. He is a wonderful person. We would be tying the knot very soon.”

She added: “We are in love and very happy. But I must admit that I get very disturbed when I read stuff about us. We have stopped googling our names and reading news about ourselves. I think it is a small price to pay for being in the public eye.

When harangued about her choice she had defended her choice pointing out to people that she was an independent woman entitled to make her choices.

She added: “As any freethinking independent woman I am entitled to certain choices. I am very happy with my choice and so is Aamir. Our parents are happy too. But there will always be those elements, that small minority who will always pass negative comments about dating someone from another religion. It is just that 5%. The majority are very happy. You would have seen in my Facebook timeline that most of the comments are encouraging. In fact, I am overwhelmed by the support and congratulatory messages. I thought ‘yeh to achcha hai” (this is good.).”

When asked how she felt about being an icon for Dalits, she said: “I don't think I can be an icon yet because I am yet to do something concrete. By hard work, God's grace and some luck, I managed to top an exam. But at the end of the day it is just an exam and I still have a long way to go. I still have to go on the field and do something. I still have to prove myself. I know that there is so much social stigma attached to being a Dalit that it is unthinkable for many Dalit students that they can ever top the exam. So, if I can encourage any student to do better, I think it is wonderful.”