archana hande

www dot arrange your own marriage dot com
An exciting site to help you choose options to arrange your own marriage
9 - 30 December 2005

www dot arrange your own marriage dot com is a web and installation project that investigates the structure of arranged marriage and the entire package that it comes with.

Many of Archana Hande's creative investigations have begun with her observations of the South Indian Brahamin community that she was born into. It has become fashionable and common for many young men and women from this community to travel the seven seas seeking better prospects for education, employment, and standard of living, especially since the IT boom that hit Silicon Valley in the late 90's and early 2000's. This has made it increasingly hard to find eligible bachelors/ets locally, without going returning to India on short visits planned especially for the purpose and going through the painful akwardness of meeting, and agreeing to marry, under the gaze of hopeful elders.

With the flow of global capital, an increasing number of Indians today are being able to meet their US aspirations. However, with that the Indian arranged marriage system has also experienced a transformation. It has also become a global market wherein traditional marriage bureaus and matchmakers have replaced on-line arranged marriage partner search sites. An individual who might be unable to access the desired dream due to financial circumstances, lack of educational qualifications, or lack of ambition, can simply opt for an alliance with a Green Card holder, the easiest point of access.

Archana Handa explores this phenomenon with a fictional dotcom website that helps one surf and select:

• Bridal gifts
• Products to keep ones partner happy
• Information about interesting cities or places for a honeymoon or to settle in
• Sharing of exciting experiences from other site users to help improve one's position
• The site garuntees that one need not worry any more about caste, religion, language or country barriers since the dot com takes care of this problem without involving one's parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, grandaunts.. a ready package for this generation and the next!

"Nothing changes - the 'arranged' in the 'arranged marriage' remains - the person is still unknown, and the marriage continues to take place within religious tradition. All the software engineers in the USA, lonely and nostalgic about their country, food, traditions and customs can find appropriate partners who are waiting keenly waiting to access the gates of "heaven" where status and luxury will follow," writes Hande.

Visit: www.arrangeurownmarriage.com | www.archanahande.com