Arranged marriages are the latest trend

Marriages seem to be on a steady decline with divorce rates on an all time high with each passing year. Even amongst people who want to get married, it will come as a surprise to many that more and more youngsters now want to have an arranged marriage.

Rewind to a few years back: the same concept of arranged marriage was considered uncool, and individuals who did, would do it because they never fell in love or didn’t want to disappoint their families.

Psychologist Seema Hingorani agrees that youngsters looking to get hitched the arranged way have been on the rise. “Arranged marriages have been around for a long time now, though in between everyone around wanted to fall in love and get married. Youngsters, today, have no patience to work on a relationship and get bored of each other in a very short time and are not able to sustain relationships. That’s one of the reasons for them preferring arranged marriages.”

Seema says that failed relationships are also one of the main reasons why arranged marriages are preferred. “I have people coming to me saying that they do not want to take chances and fall in love again because of their past experience.  Most often opt for arranged marriages because they are scared to fall in love . “

Shweta Agarwal, 27-year-old corporate professional, is of the opinion that arranged marriages are the only ones that work. “I never fell in love with anyone because I know it is too much of a heartbreak when the relationship ends. Besides didn’t our parents, who had arranged marriages, live with each other for so long? I am sure one gradually falls in love with one’s husband after getting married.”

Another reason for the increase in arranged marriages is that it has parent’s approval. 30-year-old Kunal Sharma, who got married to a girl his parents chose, wasn’t sure his parents would be happy with his choice. “I was seeing a girl for two years, but she was of a different caste. I knew my parents would never agree to the match. To avoid the entire hassle, I got married to a girl of their choice. That way, if at all my relationship doesn’t work out, I at least have my parents’ support,” he says.