Lifestyle / Looking For Love? These Desi Dating Apps May Just Be For You!

Looking For Love? These Desi Dating Apps May Just Be For You!

Lifestyle Feb 14, 2020

by Devika Desai

Finding love online can be overwhelming. In the spirit of Valentine’s Day we have rounded up some of the more interesting Desi dating apps that are out there so you can get your swiping started!

It’s the best of times, it’s the worst of times. For some, Valentine’s Day is the gift that keeps on giving as they indulge the showers of chocolate, flowers and romance in their lives.

For others with no special someone in their lives, the day can be daunting and easy to get lost in. If you’re single and looking, fret not – we got you covered. With a simple swipe, you can use any of these five apps, targeted specifically towards our South Asian wild hearts to find yourself a date for the day (or the rest of your life)!

Dil Mil

The idea for Dil Mil, a South Asian dating app based in San Francisco, first came to founder KJ Dhaliwal’s mind in 2014, as he watched his friends and family struggle to find someone within their community, looking for something more serious than a Tinder fling.

“When I started Dil Mil, it was just an app for South Asians to meet and connect globally but the brand today has morphed into much more than that,” said Dhaliwal. “It’s about love, it’s about art, it’s about music.”

These Desi Dating Apps May Just Be For You! — **These Desi Dating Apps May Just Be For You: Dil Mil.** Photo Credit: Dil Mil

The app works, much in the same way as most others. Enter in a few key details about yourself and a previously coded learning algorithm will use the information to display personalized matches for you. Afraid a nosy older relative might try to hack your account? Dil Mil ensures only you can access it by forcing you to log in through your Facebook profile.

Since its conception, the app has erupted into a full blown success and has generated over 20 million matches for its users and, according to its spokesperson Jaz Singh, has averaged one marriage a day. On its social media, Dil Mil has created a prominent space by sharing its success stories with the world “to showcase the legitimacy of the app and prove that it works.”

Aisle

Similar to Dil Mil, Aisle was also founded in 2014 by Able Joseph who wanted to build a modern dating substitute for Shaadi.com.

However, unlike Dil Mil, Aisle takes a lot more work to use — but the rewards could be that much higher. “Scarcity and UX,” said Joseph, via email. “Users cannot get unlimited likes or invites even if they upgraded,” he added, explaining that even a premium user can only send three invites and a handful of likes per day. “That way, only the serious ones stay.”

Unlike Dil Mil, there is no swiping on Aisle. Once a user signs up, they are shown a set of curated profiles based on their interests, philosophy etc and if interested, can like anonymously or send invites too (if they opt for the premium upgrade). “Invites are like love letters,” Joseph said.

The app appears to be more popular with men, with 70 per cent of its user base male and only 30 per cent female. Joseph estimates that 28 people find matches daily.

Mingle Guru

Mingle Guru, a U.K. based app, is dedicated to the British Sikh community was created in 2005, after its founders realized “from personal experience” that there was a gap in the market for a niche dating service.

“You will only find British Indians and that simplifies the search,” said Manjula and Nilesh Halai, the co-founders of the service. In the past 15 years, the service caters to a demographic of 55 per cent male and 45 per cent female.

Users only have to take a few minutes to sign up, create a profile and then use an advanced search to find each other, using their U.K. postal code to judge for distance. After viewing a person’s profile and photos, they can contact them for free by “sending them Likeys.” Members who subscribe to the pay-as-you-go model can also use the private messaging area to send unlimited messages (Users who haven’t subscribed can only reply to already sent messages).

The app also offers articles on dating advice to help its users get started in the dating world, such as how to not treat your date like a job interview and a practical guide to managing a break up.

Currently Mingle Guru is the only dating app that targets the niche Sikh community and over the past 15 years, has amassed 11,000 users. The founders have no current plans to take the app worldwide.

Shaadi.com

Last but not the least is the OG, Shaadi.com remains in the foray of dating services for people looking to find their life partner in the South Asian culture. Founded by Anupam Mittal in 1996, Shaadi.com was one of the pioneers of internet dating/matchmaking for South Asians, looking to find their partners with similar values, but without the barrier of distance.

The website operates on what the founders call a “freemium model.” Users can sign up for free and access the thousands of matches available, as per their preferences. With a paid premium upgrade, they also gain access to the contact information of other members. The website also offers personalized & discreet services such as VIP Shaadi, where a dedicated consultant helps curate matches and arrange meetings between prospects.

At heart, shaadi.com is still a family decision, rather than an individual, according to Kayshel Fernandes, the website’s spokesperson. “Parents, siblings, near and dear ones are all involved in the process. And with families, we enjoy a discontinuous advantage in terms of trust,” she wrote.

In the last 20 years, over 35 million people have registered themselves on Shaadi.com and the website has recorded over six million success stories. The website still receives over 15,000 new sign ups daily.

And there’s more!

If these don’t catch your eye, there are plenty more apps in the sea for you to try!

For the general South Asian community:

Desi Crush

For the Parsi Community:

Aapro

Truly Madly (Specific to India)

For the Muslim Community:

Minder

Eshq

Last December, NIM, a matchmaking app targeting the Muslim community was launched in the U.K., U.S., Canada, Saudi Arabia, France, Turkey and Dubai. The app includes novel features, such as video-calling, an option to add a chaperone to monitor profiles (for more Sharia-compliant users), the option to allow friends and relatives to make suggestions and lets women initiate conversations once the pair is matched.

So get swiping, tapping and clicking away and enjoy your Valentine’s Day!

Main Image Photo Credit: Charles/Unsplash

Devika Desai

Author

Devika (@DevikaDesai1) has a Masters in Journalism from Ryerson University. She's currently a web producer for the National Post. She has also interned at MidDay, a Mumbai-based tabloid. In her free time, she loves to read, work out once every blue moon and ask strangers if she can pet their dogs.

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Looking For Love? These Desi Dating Apps May Just Be For You!

by Devika Desai

Devika Desai

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