Shock value is prized in advertisement campaigns, but ‘Mr and Mrs Sreeram’ got more than they had bargained for when they put out an ad for the ‘Grand National Young Achievers Matrimony Meet’.
The quarter-page advertisement, on Page 1 of a leading English-language daily in Bengaluru, was clear about who it wanted at its meet at the Leela Palace on August 12: young achievers, people from ultra-rich families, and “beautiful girls”.
All hell broke loose as people from across the country tore into the Young Achievers Matrimony ad, describing it as sexist and classist.
In a subsequent ad in the same paper, the Sreerams, who began their company five months ago, published an apology, saying the use of the ‘objectionable’ term ‘beautiful girls’ was unintentional.
Dear sir and madam, ‘beautiful girls’ is not objectionable by any stretch of the imagination. It is only when you put girls in the beauty category and exclude them from the achievers’ category that right-thinking people are outraged.
Metrolife reporters posed as potential brides and grooms and called the numbers to find out what it was all about.
No age bar, really
Caller 1: A 28-year-old woman who wants to know how the matrimonial meet works.
YAM: You don’t have to pay anything right now. We will go through your application, scan the others and call you back on August 6 in case we find a match for you. If you find that interesting, then you can pay. There is no age bar; anybody can apply. We don’t filter applications based on caste or religion unless you so specify.
Discount for IIT grad
Caller 2: IIT Kanpur graduate now jobless but hoping to set up a startup related to farming.
YAM: That’s okay sir. As long you are from IIT background, you are eligible for this. Why we put up a condition like that is because even these small business people call themselves entrepreneurs.
Once I receive your profile, I will go through your website and do a check on you. This is not like any online matrimony service. I will personally take care of all the requests that come in and suggest suitable matches for you.
Caller: I saw that the amount is Rs 25,000...
YAM: That is not for you; that is for rich people. Those who don’t belong to young achievers category; you have to pay only Rs 10,000.
(The call attendant meanwhile got another call from a woman in Hyderabad who wanted her profile kept confidential. He assured her all she had to do was mark the subject line of her profile ‘confidential’. All phones in the office kept ringing throughout the duration of this call.)
Divorced? No problem
Caller 3: A divorced 30-year-old woman working in a leading MNC, and looking for a second match.
YAM: Oh, you are divorced? Hmm...(trails off thoughtfully). That’s okay, you can send in your profile to us. We will look for alliances for you among divorced men; many of them have sent in applications to us.”
37? You qualify too
Caller 4: A 37-year-old male divorcee.
Caller: You say the grooms must be young….
YAM: Send the profile and we’ll call you back. I know we have called for young achievers but that’s okay. If we find a good number of matching profiles for you, you can pay to register.
Bottomline
For all the strict qualifications about prospective grooms and brides, the service is not overly concerned about who finally makes it through their hallowed portals. Pay and play!