Many friends asked Nehha, “Are you sure? Isn’t it too soon?”, when she told them that she found her soulmate and was getting married in December. But Nehha in her heart knew it was the right decision.
“I had never heard of Aisle”, said Nehha as she began narrating her story. Following a bad experience she had on a matrimonial website that her parents had registered for her, she decided to take matters into her own hands. A Google search later, she came across an article that mentioned Aisle. She felt that since the members were handpicked and the invites were paid for, maybe she might find someone. In March 2017, Neha signed up on Aisle. Her bio read:
“Connect with me only if you are okay with me travelling for my work-with me being in the limelight many a times-with me following my passions(and helping you follow yours)-I love living life for the moments-spontaneity-varied interests-love cooking and being of use to the world at large too. If you’re someone who lives life gently and with love and kindness-yay. If you are not mired in convention-stifled by rules and regulations at home-hi”
She was glad that though her profiles got many views, very few reached out to her. Among the ones who did sent her an invite, was Omprakash. “Not only had she written something in her description, I loved what she wrote. I could resonate with her thoughts and had a good feeling that she would make sense of the space language I spoke”, says Omprakash who took the first step. This is what his bio read:
If you have a little more time to kill today, like 180 seconds or so, google/YouTube ‘pale blue dot’ watch anyone of those 3 to 5 min video (by Carl Sagan), if you love it too, I think there’s a good chance we’ll get along just fine :)
~Ompi-Wan Kenobi
At first glance she thought they had nothing in common. He is a Kannadiga settled in Australia while she is from Delhi. She also thought that the name ‘Omprakash’ was quite old-school. “But there was something about those eyes and that smile. It felt like he would be an interesting person”. And so she accepted the invite.
After chatting on the app for a while they soon switched to texts and calls. In August, Nehha had to fly down to Australia for a dance performance as well as promote her NGO. Although her flight tickets would be funded by the organisation, Omprakash offered to buy her flight tickets and show her around. Nehha being the independent woman that she is, refused. But Omprakash was persistent. Finally Nehha agreed considering that, if nothing else, they might become good friends. Omprakash went ahead and not just booked the flight tickets, but also planned an entire itinerary and bought tickets to other events and places they both could visit.
Unfortunately, she was requested for a performance at the Rashtrapati Bhavan and had to postpone her trip. She apologised and expected Omprakash to be very upset about this. Instead, he went ahead and cancelled all the tickets, and booked it again for the next date that she was now travelling. This won her heart. She arrived in Australia and he showed her around. Not once did she feel like he was someone she’s never met.
Omprakash saw in Nehha a person who is passionate about dancing, caring for the children at her NGO and is a person who is never shy to express her views. And that’s exactly what he admired about her.
While discussing their lives they were astonished to find they had a lot more in common than they expected. They both decided that they won’t have any kids of their own, but rather ease the suffering of the many many children who don’t have a home or a family.
After Nehha had returned back from Australia, Omprakash planned a trip to India. Nehha decided it was her turn to play host now. They made plans of where they could go over several calls and texts. Unfortunately Nehha was again was called for work at the last minute.
“I love my work, but I know when and where I should draw the line. And at that point, I was ready to draw that line for him”, she states.
Once they decided to spend their lives with each other, they spoke to the parents who then decided that the families should meet. This, they thought, would be quite challenging because both the families were different culturally. But like they say, Love conquers all, the meeting went absolutely fine. The parents were happy that their children had found each other and soon a date was fixed.
Wedding Date: 13th December, 2017
While the families have started with their side of preparations for the big day, Nehha downloaded an app that will help her learn Kannada, and Omprakash is getting used to being in the limelight once in awhile. They decided to have a small wedding at an ancient temple followed by a classical music and dance performance for the reception at the temple auditorium.
Yes, planning a wedding when you’re in two different time zones is not easy, nor is staying apart after the marriage. Nehha shares that she looks up to her father, who was in the merchant navy, and mother who are her inspiration to make a marriage that can work long distance. Her mum, she adds, has truly been a role model too in being fiery and getting many things done by herself.
“It’s funny how everything unfolded in the end. We have never crossed paths, we didn’t have any mutual friends or relatives and we both lived miles away from each other. But something just felt right — Like an old friend or home. And the wait was worth it.”
Best wishes from Aisle on this wonderful journey, as you build your new lives together.
