MatchMe is an elite matchmaking service based in New Delhi, India. The personalized matchmaking firm provides curated matches from around the world and is considered one of the best amongst the high-end matrimonial services found in the country. What sets it apart is the organic and progressive approach of Mishi and Tania, who steer this enterprise.

Tell us a little about how you started MatchMe? How did you become Matchmakers?

Tania: Mishi and I are college friends. Mishi has always been passionate about connecting people: she has introduced many of our friends to their husbands. I have a background in executive search. Since our MBA we’ve been working in various roles and organizations. As both of us belong to business backgrounds, we always had an entrepreneurial spirit. After casual discussions over coffee about how we could leave our jobs and start something of our own, we found strength and common ground in the idea of starting a personalized search service . Mishi had been helping a very close friend through a similar process which gave us good insights on the state of the industry and how we could fill in the gaps to make the process more comfortable and fruitful.

What is the one thing you wish you knew when you started? Do you remember your first match? Can you tell us about it discreetly?

Mishi – We started MatchMe in 2015. One thing we knew we were going to create was a like- minded, curated network of progressive-thinking people. We wanted to make the search process with MatchMe comfortable and confidential; just how we would have liked it if we ourselves were going through the process.

We definitely remember our first match. It was within a few months of starting. We introduced a 36-year-old guy in Delhi to this vivacious 29 year old girl from Singapore who was working in Mumbai at the time. The way the two clicked and decided to get married within a few months, we realized how things like age, location etc, which to many at times can seem like a hindrance,  just don’t matter when you meet the right person for you. She happily made the move from Singapore to Delhi. It was beautiful to see the two together and they’re happily settled in Delhi with beautiful daughters now. That actually prompted us to add the line you see on our website – One right introduction can change your life (lol)!

How do you decide who to take on as clients?

Tania -We need to connect with the people we work with. If we do, we know our clients will as well. We look for liberal-minded, progressive-thinking, educated people. We don’t focus much on community-based matches.

Most people will associate Indian Matchmakers with a matchmaking service; how are you different?

Mishi – Personalized matchmakers work like friends with their clients, also helping them overcome the biggest challenge of the awkwardness and friction people feel about coming to meet someone they don’t know. Perhaps with the influx of new websites to cater to the matrimonial needs of the urban Indian, the menace of the internet that is creeping into our lives, along with the advantages, will see a shift in the way matchmaking is done for the well-educated and well-established groups, as they want to turn away from the online sites to more meaningful personal introductions that save not only their time but also maintain their privacy.

What advice do you have for people looking for a partner?

If you are someone who has finally decided that the time for mindless dating is over and wants to find a partner, the journey must begin with you. Look inwards and do some serious introspection to figure out what you want in life. As they say, if you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything. Think about what your life will look like with your partner and your family. Focus on what will bring joy into your lives and not just momentary happiness. If you need help clearing the fog, we can always help you along the way!

No one wants to own up to using a matchmaker; how do you overcome this bias?

Tania- We believed a lot of people out there were looking out for introductions for marriage but were not comfortable with the services available in the market in this space. The bureaux’s and agencies’ ways of working were not what they were looking for. They were mainly relying on introductions through family and friends which over time keep shrinking. When we started we met so many like-minded people who came forward to sign up with us for their search as we tried to fill this gap. We were working as friends and trusted partners to understand them and introduce them to like-minded people. Our clientele are well-educated, liberal-minded and progressive-thinking people who value compatibility in a marriage the most. These are the set of people we tried to target and that’s actually how it unfolded for us. We have a network of well-educated, well-established Indians all across the globe now !

What would you say is the biggest challenge for dating/matchmaking in 2022?

Mishi– Covid has changed our lives in many ways and it has had its effects on the dating/ matchmaking space too. Long distance relationships became a challenge, travel hasn’t been easy and sometimes meeting in the same city also has been difficult. Since we cannot say we’ve got rid of covid yet, let’s see how 2022 goes .People have started looking for more meaningful relationships rather than casual dating and it may remain so for a while.

What do most of your clients look for when it comes to matchmaking?

Tania- Compatibility

What’s next for MatchMe?

Mishi- We’re leveraging technology and developing a platform where we can reach out to more and more people who can use our application, keeping the experience of the search process as close to being personalized as possible. Our application should be out in a few months’ time.