Fun bits on Indian news
I love reading Indian News Paper (in English, of course), especially the classified ads on Bride and Grooms wanted. Arrange marriages have taken another forms. Some parents advertise their daughter or sons to other parents, listing out their financial credential: such as: important Bangalore wholesaler for Darjeeling tea, seeking alliances with families from the same region. Goes like this,
"strong Bangalore business connection and seeking suitable alliance in Karnacata".
Of course, young Indians put up an ad for themselves as well. Boys usually advertise for
"tall fair educated girls have jobs but are willing to stay home as well."
Some boys boast other qualities:
"Police man physique..."
"Has a well-paid job/ 100,000 US dollars yearly income in Canada."
As for girls when it comes to self-advertising, they tend to follow "the golden rules":slim, fair, genteel, educated, family-oriented. But their requests for ideal grooms are mostly about the grooms' backgrounds and potentials.
Some bride and groom wannabes list out their demands in caste term as well. Some even narrow down to specific sect. But some, on the other hand, listed as "caste no bar". On religion, some even ask for "God fearing groom/ bride" but mostly only ask for having the same religion.
(below is purely come out of my arse. nothing serious.)
I find these ads extremely honest and logical. (yeah, some may put down some white lies...) I do see the reason behind the arranged marriage. It is a method systematically bring two people with roughly the same backgrounds together. Having the same values and economical situation, the chance of making the marriage work is relatively high. Especially, in a country like India, people don't exist as individual purely but as a family. What is your last name, what is your religion, and who you associate with are closely linked with your and your family's identity.
And we Taiwanese, I have to say, are a bit in between. As a country just stepping into modernity/post-industrialized/nuclear families, the shifting from arrange marriage norm (which secured fortune and status within your class) into western free love mode (the rise of individualism and self-reinventing era) is relatively new. I wouldn't say we are, in fashion term, mix and match of retro and new. We are like, some are just permanently stay in the 80s where the shoulder pads are forever in while some are trying out the space suits as their little black dresses.
