New Delhi: It's that time of the year when everyone's tying the knot. And it's also that time of the year when detective agencies make a lot of money.
The trend of hiring detective agencies to find out the details of one's spouse before marriage is fast catching on in India.
One of the many in the profession is Sanjeev Verma. For the past two weeks, his assignment has been to follow the gray car — tracking its every movement and making a mental note of whatever the driver does.
Sanjeev's a detective and he's been keeping a trained eye on this man on the instructions of his fiancée. She's been told he's a banker and a non-smoker.
Ahead of the wedding season, the detective agency Sanjeev works for receives 40 cases every month, from men and women who want their future spouses checked out.
"The people who come to us want to know the reputation of the person they are marrying — what is their character, is he/she having an affair," says Sanjay Singh, Director of Indian Detective Agency.
Requests usually come from people who meet their partners through matrimonial sites and Internet chat rooms.
After falling in love with the virtual man or woman, young people are turning to detectives to find out if the real person is as good as the online avataar.
Hiring a detective costs any thing between Rs 5,000 to Rs 25,000, depending on how long these investigations take.
The investigation package includes character check, the reputation of the person's family and some times verifying every little thing that have been told — like smoking or drinking habits.
"Fifty per cent of these cases in fact come from abroad because they are not here in India to meet the person they marry. Before they make up their mind, they tell me to find out what they are like," says Singh.
But ask any one on the streets if they would pay some one to spy on their future partners and they say: "No way!" There are some who feel, "I would completely trust my partner."
And yet, it's pre-marital checks that bring in maximum business for detective agencies in India. Going by the increase in the number of cases every year, the presumption before tying the knot is simple: untrustworthy till proved otherwise.
ibn
The trend of hiring detective agencies to find out the details of one's spouse before marriage is fast catching on in India.
One of the many in the profession is Sanjeev Verma. For the past two weeks, his assignment has been to follow the gray car — tracking its every movement and making a mental note of whatever the driver does.
Sanjeev's a detective and he's been keeping a trained eye on this man on the instructions of his fiancée. She's been told he's a banker and a non-smoker.
Ahead of the wedding season, the detective agency Sanjeev works for receives 40 cases every month, from men and women who want their future spouses checked out.
"The people who come to us want to know the reputation of the person they are marrying — what is their character, is he/she having an affair," says Sanjay Singh, Director of Indian Detective Agency.
Requests usually come from people who meet their partners through matrimonial sites and Internet chat rooms.
After falling in love with the virtual man or woman, young people are turning to detectives to find out if the real person is as good as the online avataar.
Hiring a detective costs any thing between Rs 5,000 to Rs 25,000, depending on how long these investigations take.
The investigation package includes character check, the reputation of the person's family and some times verifying every little thing that have been told — like smoking or drinking habits.
"Fifty per cent of these cases in fact come from abroad because they are not here in India to meet the person they marry. Before they make up their mind, they tell me to find out what they are like," says Singh.
But ask any one on the streets if they would pay some one to spy on their future partners and they say: "No way!" There are some who feel, "I would completely trust my partner."
And yet, it's pre-marital checks that bring in maximum business for detective agencies in India. Going by the increase in the number of cases every year, the presumption before tying the knot is simple: untrustworthy till proved otherwise.
ibn
