“Ours was a perfect arranged marriage; we met in a temple formally with the family and finalised everything withing a day. And slowly, it developed into a meaningful relationship and we got married within a few days. Having 7 years between us came as a blessing as well as a hassle in most of the instances but it has blossomed into a beautiful relationship now.

I am often in awe of people who say marriages are difficult because it only stems from the lack of a strong foundation. Our marriage went through a rocky phase during our son’s pregnancy since I was posted in Hyderabad; so I would take a flight on the one day week off and travel to Chennai and leave the very next day; this continued from 8 months of her pregnancy till the delivery.

We have travelled extensively all through India since we both love visiting new places. The first one and a half years after marriage was a true grace period since we were able to explore the world together as a couple and that was the most pleasurable time of our lives. Even today, when we have to travel someplace, we leave our son with our parents and take off for the day.

Though I haven’t actively surprised her with gifts, she loves gifting me with unique thoughts presents and occasions. Even recently, she gifted me air pods since my earphones were out of use. She has booked us for special occasions in restaurants and taken me there just for the sheer happiness of it.

As girls, they leave every member of their family to be with us and our family members so it helps to have that understanding that despite every hurdle, love is enough to bypass every misgiving.

Sacrifices are key but if you can learn to be the bigger person in the relationship knowing that the person comes first more than the misunderstanding, you would have a long-lasting meaningful relationship and that is my honest wish for everyone out there.”