With Arranged series creating all the buzz on TV Three, it was so good to have the opportunity to get some insights from the participants of the show, and they're experiences. One being Niki Chawla, Compliance Manager and makeup artist in Auckland, whose story you might have already watched on the 29th of January episode and the other is Jilesh Desai, whose episode is yet to come.

Niki cannot deny the immense contribution this show has made in helping her make the decision to find the right match. She had the opportunity to figure out lots, especially what her expectations were. Keeping in mind her family and their expectations, the show taught her that it was not only about conversations that always happen in families, but it was that time in her life to find someone that would respect both her and her family, share the same values and traditions.

“The experience was great! It's just really good to understand where me and my parents are coming from, our ways of thinking coming together, if it’s my modern approach, then it’s their modern-traditional approach, and it's about coming together and figuring things out regarding marriage” says Niki.

While everything seems perfect for Niki, the show doesn’t shy from taking up the challenges that come along. Being a New Zealand citizen and finding the right match that comes with the right mindset is anyways a big challenge.

“Finding a guy who is already a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident, is in one way, a form of security, but also I think that someone who hasn't been here for a long time will not have the same modern mindset as us” added Niki.

This is a crucial topic for the Chawla family and finding someone who is already here is one of the conditions. There have been cases where marriage has only been a residency affair.

While on the other hand it has worked wonders for some, particularly when it comes to boys looking for girls outside New Zealand. An example in the making could be Seerat’s case that is show alongside Niki in the show.

“Not everyone is like that…” clarifies Niki, as she comes to the table with the right balance but keeps her parents' judgment, right on the top. She has personally seen cases where marriage is just a sham.

Yet she shrugs off the fact that there is any sort of confusion or any unwillingness to take that decision of committing to someone for marriage, despite being surrounded by a culture which has predominant relations like a live-in partnership.

“.... if you love someone and if you want to be with someone, I don’t know why you shouldn’t get married…” she explains, while embracing her modern, fiery and very vocal approach in addressing matters related to marriage.

While Niki is one of those signals that wants to take the balanced approach, we have Seerat following the age-old tradition of arranged marriage, letting his parents choose the one for him.

And then Jilesh Desai, Radio Jockey by profession poured out his honest outlook with regards to the marriage saga which has been impending since a few years of his life.

When nudged on the most important question on whether he found love, he insisted that to know the answer you would have to watch the show.

“My experience at the sets of Arranged was very satisfying, this was my second-year filming with them, the entire team are such professionals, they know exactly the kind of questions they are going to ask to get the right answer per se, they respect your privacy, and the process is very transparent. They make it look so easy; I mean I loved it,” said Jilesh.

Like any other Indian family, Jilesh too had his family both in India and New Zealand (surrogate family) equally involved in the process of finding his significant other, he was prompted and pushed in several ways.

Clearly, every story you pick up from the series gets you back to the point that how important it is for children to keep their parents at the centre while making this decision of marital commitment, be it with a modern or traditional approach.

Jilesh, also, has his part of challenges cropping up where he admits that he learnt the hard ways, admitting to one reality that is; when you actually go out in the search of finding someone, you hardly do find someone.

Also, when he was asked if it was New Zealand’s culture that got in his way of traditionally arranged setup, then to this he mentions that it is more to do with the current generation and their ideologies.

“I think the very fact that this generation, including myself, we have a lot of choices, when you have a lot of choices, I feel it also confuses you big time” he says, further confirms that there is a lack of devotion in the current generation.

Apart from this, Jilesh brought to light one more problem that this pandemic has created. Nope! it’s not just the long distance relationship but it's the fear of too much.

He reflects on the routine of a normal relationship that existed before pandemic hit, where you would go abouts doing your work in the day and meet your significant other at the end of the day to spend some quality time. That has now been disturbed. He points out that working from home culture has created this weird space where there is too much togetherness.

Arranged has made their journeys easier in the sense where they got to explore the possibilities of what they are wanting or what they are looking for in a relationship. And most important of all, will that relationship lead to marriage? Will they have a happily ever after? For more answers tune into TV Three every Saturday at 4 pm. - Vritti Parasher

Program Information: Arranged, on Three, Saturdays at 4pm or available to stream on ThreeNow (from 29 January 2022)
Episode 01 - Seerat and Niki
Episode 02 - Ashleen and Shafee
Episode 03 - Jilesh and Farhein
Episode 04 - Sonam and Jatin
Episode 05 - Harpreet & Sahil, and Rajwinder & Gurvinder
Episode 06 - Atul & Manolata, and Prem

Arranged yet?