1. From Likes to Love
Thanks first to the internet, and then the smartphone, people today—young or old—do not date. Instead they discover each other via social networks and then strengthen their relationships by adding each other on messaging apps like WhatsApp, Instagram and of course, Snapchat (the pinnacle of modern intimacy, in a way). Indian matrimonial websites like BharatMatrimony.com and Shaadi.com have also been gamed by youngsters who use them to find “like-minded” friends to date, even while their none-the-wiser parents are thinking they’re searching for a spouse. Then there are matchmaking websites like Floh.in which charge single members a subscription fee to find other singles. Serendipity is dead on the internet, and so is dating, at least as some of us old-timers knew it.
(This story appears in the 10 January, 2014 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)