HYDERABAD: Love at first sight
As a married person, one of the most frequent questions I am asked is whether my marriage was arranged. I am afraid, none of these categories applies to me. All I can say is that my marriage to Srinivas is unique. The first time Shri (Srinivas) ever saw me was on stage. It was chance that he agreed to accompany his parents to one of my family concerts in Hyderabad. His parents and mine were friends. I know what you are thinking, and no it was not pre-arranged by our parents. Believe me, it was chance or destiny or whatever you may call it, because the first time he met me, he knew, I was the girl he wanted to spend his life with.
Foundation of relationship
I, on the other hand wasn’t ready to be betrothed and even less in Hyderabad. But as I said it was destined. Within a month after the first concert, I came back to Hyderabad for a second one. This time fully aware of the proposal that awaited me. There was always something about him. I never said an outright no. So I agreed to court him a bit before I finally made my decision.
The courtship was a pleasant surprise for me. Srinivas turned out be all that I expected from my suitor. In fact, this one time when he took me out for lunch, we were so engrossed in each other’s company that we didn’t realise six hours had passed. What was striking, in both of us, was that we were very open and frank about what we wanted in life and what we expected from each other in our relationship. For me, I always wanted someone with a golden heart and I felt I had found that in him.
We were hooked within two days of me saying yes. It was like a dream. My friends just didn’t believe it. They thought I would be last in my friends circle to get married. But I beat everyone to it.
He got on one knee, and I said yes
Neither Shri nor I are outright romantics. So we never did the whole flower and chocolate thing during our courtship. But I always wanted a romantic proposal. Shri came to know about this from my sister and with help from her he proposed to me down on one knee with a flower and ring. It was wonderful really. I am so glad I have that memory to cherish. We were engaged for eight months before we got married. During this period, we got to know each other better. We realised both of us were not only from different cities but from very different worlds. Yet, at the core, our principles, beliefs, integrity and work ethics were the same.
I believed once these are in place, everything else can be achieved. More importantly, Shri loved arts. Though he was not an artist himself, he was very fond of music and dance and was completely supportive of my passion for dance. You see, both of us were passionate about our work and we share this common appreciation for each other’s passion. This brought us together and this is what continues to drive us as a couple. This and of course, our love for good food.
Secret to a happy marriage
Every marriage has its own equation and every couple has their own chemistry. We have found ours.
I am not saying that the marriage that followed our engagement was a cake walk. To commit in words is easy but reinforcing it with actions is an uphill task that both partners have to work on.
All I am saying is Shri and I found our equation.
The arrival of our darling son Arjun only added a lovely new variable to our equation and we are happy to constantly try balancing it.