New Delhi: We may be living in times when dating is all about ‘right swipes’, ‘right words’, and ‘being woke’. But old-fashioned love still hasn’t lost its charm. Many still believe in the idea of enjoying a nice movie with their date while others wouldn’t think twice before serenading their love with heartfelt sonnets, songs and flowers. QuackQuack, a leading online dating app, released interesting insights into how Indians are looking at dating in the forthcoming year, after having been stricken by the global pandemic. Results show that desi singles are still holding onto that thing called ‘love’ and intend to tread that path, but with precautions.

The year 2020 has been an unprecedented one. As the basic need to connect with other humans amplified during and after lockdown, more people flocked to the popular dating apps to fill that void.In an era when video calls are making it easy for us to see our partner located oceans away from us, 65% still prefer to engage in longer text conversations that help them express themselves better, akin to writing long love letters back in the day. Out of the lot, women make up the major chunk with 90.8% preferring to text over video call. Surprisingly, 60% of people hailing from metros/bigger cities also come within the category of people preferring long text messages over quick video calls.

Simultaneously, in the backdrop of the ongoing health crisis, Indian millennials aren’t letting their guard down. 60% of people in the age bracket of 18-30 wear a mask when meeting their date as they still consider themselves at risk of contracting the virus. Amongst these, women are more cautious with 90% stating that they never forget to wear a mask on a date. About 74% of top city people and 66% of small-city folks tend to follow precautions more rigidly and prefer to wear a mask on dates to ensure their safety.

Speaking about dating people from native city or a different city, nearly 68% of people aged 31 & aboveprefer dating from their location to avoid the risk of travelling as against majority youngsters who did prefer dating people from their location but were open to the idea of dating from other cities as well. Out of these, women (52%) were more curious to meet people from other cities as compared to men who would still prefer dating from their own location. People from big cities (66%) were more cautious in this regard as against those from smaller cities (58%) who are more enthusiastic about dating from far off cities as well.

But surprises don’t stop just there! Known for their love for food, about 64% of Indians feel that matching food taste matters as having similar food taste is a sign of great compatibility, with women (66%) attaching higher importance to it compared to men (61%).Majority placed in the age group of 31 & above prefer watching movies over web series on their date, with women being more in number (65%). Dating is also a way to move on for many. More than 70% of people from both top cities and smaller cities/towns would go ahead and meet new people to get over toxic relationships.

They consider meeting new people and having more choices to pick from would get them a compatible partner.

“Despite having spent the entire last year in gloom and doom, Indians are still keeping their hopes alive in the new year and haven’t given up on the idea of finding love. The most interesting part of the survey has been the finding that many are still in for old school dates and mushy romance, with movies and matching food taste topping the list of similarities that they are looking for. It is heartening to see that people are open to traveling across cities and trying new experiences for the sake of companionship. Dating apps sure have been a blessing in disguise for many given the current circumstances.” says Mr. Ravi Mittal, Founder & CEO, QuackQuack.

Dating apps have even proven to be a meaningful exercise for many. About 25% of those aged 31 and abovesaid that meeting new people online helped them overcome lonelinessand 15% got over depression in 2020. Looking at these trends, it can be said that the Indian dating scenario is definitely going to catch more steam in the times to come!