Matchmaking For The Well-heeled

The people behind Bharat Matrimony have launched a new matrimony website targetting the HNI (High Networth Individuals) segment. 

Elitematrimony.com, launched by Consim Info Pvt Limted, formerly known as Bharat Matrimony group, is all about the elite read money getting married. With a membership fee of Rs 1 lakh for six months, it considers only people with deep pockets and entry is by invitation only.

Giving details, Murugavel Janakiraman, founder and CEO, Consim Info, said: “Once the applicants send in their requests, the team will verify the details, check their background and see if they fulfil the criteria.” The criteria is simple. You need to be either from a rich and established business family or a celebrity, a sports star, an IAS officer or a socially well-known person. Another category is high net-worth individuals - people with a more than healthy bank balance and an enviable portfolio. (Link)

To be considered as Elite, people need to justify why they think they are elite. Looks like Relationship Manager is the new word for what was commonly referred to as "Marriage Broker". My guess is that the HNI segment is more likely to be well connected and hence the need for them to seek an arranged marriage through EliteMatrimony.com would be lesser. Further, whenever middlemen are involved in the matchmaking process, there is a high likelihood that half-truths and lies would come in as the middlemen are incentivized when they strike a deal. It is probably cheaper and more effective to search for suitable brides and grooms directly through BharathMatrimony.com than paying Rs. 1 lakh and entrusting the search to a Relationship Manager. It remains to be seen whether having RM's similar to that in the Private Banking industry can succeed in the Matchmaking market. Let's see if Murugavel Janakiraman can come up with a winner this time.