Matchmaking on video calls rises to 50 pc: Survey

With the second wave of Covid-19, Jeevansathi.com, a matrimony platform, rolled out a survey to understand how this impacts the search for a life partner.

Results show that half of the respondents feel that virtual meetings will become the norm very soon; completely replacing physical meetings during one's search for a life partner. In contrast, in August 2020, only 40 per cent respondents confirmed the same. When digital transformation is the in-thing across industries, finding soulmates has also found its safe haven online.

Rohan Mathur, Business Head, Jeevansathi.com said, "Pandemic has changed the way people search for a life partner. We have witnessed the increasing affinity among our users towards virtual ways of connecting with prospective matches. While we saw a spike in usage of voice and video-calling on our platform as soon as Covid hit, the trend has continued even after relaxations in government restrictions and a drop in cases. At the onset of the Covid pandemic, we had seen the volume of calls on the platform go up 1.6X. This year, the number of voice/video calls is a whopping 11X of what it was pre-Covid. Total time spent on calls has also gone up 10 times."

As many as 38 per cent of the respondents are comfortable taking a decision based on virtual meetings alone! While digital has its own ease, it has not completely banished the importance of in-person meetings. 44 per cent respondents are happy to connect over video calls to know each other but meeting in-person is still required for the final decision. Only 18 per cent said that they still prefer meeting matches face-to-face over virtually.

It is interesting to see the newfound appreciation for small weddings with limited guest lists. While it was understandably the most popular choice when cases in the country had peaked, even after the vaccine rollout, 55 per cent of respondents have expressed their preference for smaller weddings. The second wave of Covid-19 could be one of the reasons for the same. However, in this wave, people are relatively more relaxed and want to go back to a world where big fat Indian weddings were common. Twenty seven per cent respondents said they would readily have a regular wedding now, albeit with safety precautions vs only 11 per cent respondents willing in August '20. While searching for a partner has moved online in the wake of the lockdown, virtual weddings are completely eliminated. No respondent opted for a virtual wedding in the survey, as compared to 11 per cent who did in August '20.

That said, safety and sanitisation have become the top priority in Indian weddings since the pandemic hit. Over 50 per cent respondents chose a Covid-safe wedding over the perfect outfits, pictures, food, etc. Sixty nine per cent respondents said they are now comfortable attending a pandemic wedding with the requisite precautions.