Mohan Matchmaking Convention Review: Is it Worth the Hype?
Ever wished you could participate in Netflix’s Indian Matchmaking live?
Mohan Matchmaking is trying to do just that - bring desis together IRL to facilitate relationships and, ultimately, maybe even marriages.
Anyone who has watched Indian matchmaking understands how important marriages are to desi families. Desi families often value community (if we’re being generous) and caste (if we’re not). So parents encourage, and sometimes even require, their children to find a partner from their state and religion, believing that a common cultural background supports marital stability.
As early as 20 or 30 years ago, desi communities have always had conventions to help young people meet and encourage intra-community relationships. Here are pictures of my sisters and me at our first and only Knanaya Catholic Convention in Texas in 2010 (peep the lanyards):
Mohan Matchmaking Event Details
The Mohan Matchmaking convention uniquely brings together desis from all over the U.S. - it wasn’t community specific. And unlike traditional conventions that parents often force teenagers and 20-somethings to go to, this convention was something that adults opted into without parental pressure.
The first Mohan Matchmaking convention was held in Chicago on April 7th - April 8th, 2023. It cost $600 to attend and brought together 500 men and 500 women over 26.
Here’s the event schedule from the Mohan Matchmaking event website:
Friday:
Mixer 8 PM-12 AM – Get to know all the attendees at our social gathering over dinner and drinks. We’ll have an exciting lineup of entertainment and games to keep everyone entertained during the program.
Video from the Mohan Matchmaking South Asian Convention Chicago 2023
Saturday:
Dating Convention 1 PM-4 PM – Join us for a unique opportunity to participate in speed dating, seminars, and ice-breakers. The event will take place in breakout rooms designed to cater to your preferences.
Cocktail Reception 8 PM-12 AM – Conclude the weekend with a farewell dinner reception. It’s the perfect opportunity to say goodbye to everyone and exchange memories from the amazing experiences over the past few days.
Here’s one review from the event submitted by an anonymous reader:
The Mohan matchmaking event was a waste of money! Everyone was making connections, but no one was actually matching up. It was all just so disorganized, and the guy who organized it didn't seem to care about finding suitable matches for people. He didn’t even ask what type of match I was looking for on the event application.
Many guys weren’t approaching women until they were drunk. It’s tough to approach someone stone-cold sober. More organized support from the admins would have helped ease the process.
And can we talk about the gender ratio? So many gorgeous, successful women but hardly any decent men. It was like a 1:10 ratio, but the men there were mostly the organizer's friends and family. He did nothing matchmaking-related. He only brought 500 IG-heavy, skinny, good-looking girls and 500 IG-heavy rich guys. I found better quality desi men on Hinge!
When it was time for speed dating, the age group under 30 had like a 7:1 ratio of men to women, the 30 to 35 age group had 40 extra women, and the over 40 age group had 60 extra men.
I did make some great girlfriends, though, so it wasn't a complete waste. And now, after the event, guys are reaching out to me on Instagram, which defeats the whole point of in-person interaction, but that's the world we live in now. They got my contact information by paying $250 for the VIP experience so they could get contact information about the women who attended. It seemed like only people who participated in the VIP experience actually had their preferences and matches considered.
But seriously, the event was clearly done to make the organizer money. The organizer could have done so much more to help people actually match. Like, why didn't he ask us about our preferences and types? And all those extra services he offered, like professional hair and makeup, were so unnecessary for a matchmaking event. Understanding our preferences were much more critical.
Overall, I'm pretty disappointed with how it turned out, but it was a good learning experience. At least now I know what to look for in a matchmaking event and what to avoid.
Video from the Mohan Matchmaking South Asian Convention Chicago 2023
So should you go to a matchmaking convention?
Try a matchmaking event if:
You hate online dating
You live in an area where online dating isn’t a viable option
You live in a place where you won’t meet many other desi people, and you want to date desi
You’re looking to make new desi friends in general
You could make friends, have fun, and meet a potential match or two.
Skip this type of matchmaking event if:
You live in an area with plenty of desi people you can meet through events or dating apps like Hinge
You prefer to use an app like Dil Mil or Mirchi to connect with desis around the world
Large wedding-style events aren’t your thing
