Season 3 of Desi Me Dating has arrived, and I, for one, am so excited! The first episode dropped on October 10th, and let me tell you, it does not disappoint.
The cast this year is more personable than ever, and I can’t wait to see some potential love stories play out.
The first episode features Namita, a 24-year-old Operations Advertising Manager, on her search for some rishta material. The Popshift matchmaking guru’s that be paired her up alongside Rishi, a 21-year-old College Senior who’s studying biochemistry while looking for connections with some interesting people.
How did they end up on the show? For Namita, it was a big life change, like moving to New York City, that gave her the push she needed. Albeit a little skeptical, she said she came across the show and was intrigued, but what really sealed the deal was attending a Popshift event, couple with the constant, lighthearted, nudges from her sisters. “In that moment, it dawned on me – why not take this opportunity to not only find a potential romantic partner but also to make some incredible friends along the way? The prospect of building meaningful connections and forging lasting friendships was too appealing to pass up, and that’s how my journey to explore this new opportunity began,” said Namita.
For Rishi, it was the representation that really stood out. “I became interested in the show primarily because of my desire to be part of content made specifically for the South Asian community. Also, I’ve grown up in communities that unfortunately haven’t had many South Asians, so I was excited about the prospect of meeting South Asian women in such an unconventional way,” he said.
Even from the intros, you can tell that although the daters might be in two different places in their lives, there’s still a lot of potential. Both seem charming and down to earth, with great senses of humour. The date starts off a little awkward, but that’s nothing reciting some classic Bollywood dialogues can’t fix.
I won’t spoil the episode in case you haven’t watched it yet, but let me tell you, the questions behind the curtain this year are better than ever. My favorite has to be when the daters are asked to pass judgment based on the shoes the other is wearing. You can definitely tell a lot on that alone! Apologies to the New Balance-wearing community in advance.
After the curtain chat, Namita and Rishi go into making some fresh pasta while serving some spicy tea about sex lives, dating preferences and more. After seeing that, I have many thoughts, but mainly, I would like Rishi to go home and practice how to mix ingredients together. But more importantly, shout out to the team for bringing these questions up. The subject of sexuality when dating in the Desi world is made taboo way too often, and it’s refreshing to see their real and honest answers.
Moments my Dil (heart) couldn’t handle:: I’ll have to give this one to Rishi. I can’t explain the tizzy that his comment on the psychological effects of colonialism on dating in the Desi community put me into. I won’t spoil the moment, you’ll just have to watch the episode to see for yourself.
Do Namita and Rishi end up on a second date? Stay tuned for more to come this season, and who knows, maybe we’ll see these two again soon.
