AKSHAT AND PRAMITI GOENKA

THEY FOUND LOVE IN AN ‘ARRANGED’ SET-UP, PEACE WITHIN A TRADITIONAL JOINT FAMILY AND JOY IN THEIR LITTLE SON, AVYAANSH. IN A TÊTE-À-TÊTE WITH HELLO!, THE COUPLE SHARES WHY THEY DON’T BELIEVE IN THE ‘POWER OF TWO’ BUT IN THE COLLECTIVE STRENGTH OF FRIENDS AND FAMILY

- NEEVA JAIN

As a couple, you embody the new-age dynamics of our times even as you retain your rootedness in tradition and culture. Share with us a little about your backgrounds...

Pramiti: “Ours is an interesting story. After getting my undergraduate degree from Indiana University, Bloomington, I completed a GIA course in New York to become a gemologist, before I returned to India. My desire was to spend more time with my family, learn the ropes of the male-dominated jewellery business from my father. We are a family of four siblings – two daughters and two sons – and I’ve always been the one interested in jewellery. I was the lucky one who got to travel with our parents from the age of two-and-a-half. My mother would take me to all the jewellery shows. So, my early years were soaked and immersed in a global culture.”

Akshat: “I was born in Kolkata and my parents moved to Delhi in 1996. I completed my undergraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania and I’m presently pursuing the OPM (Owner/President Management) program at the Harvard University. I’m currently working with my father in our family business.”

I believe it has been a traditional arranged marriage for you, all the way...

A: “I think the whole concept of arranged and love marriages are intertwined. In an arranged marriage, your parents or family members introduce you to a prospective partner and in love marriages, it’s often friends who set us up. When Pramiti and I first met, I was actually quite tired of the arranged marriage format. But, it was amusing because after our first meeting, my parents encouraged me to stay in touch with Pramiti. So, the second time we met, my father-in-law basically told us that we had to decide at that moment itself ! So, I decided to take the plunge.”