Munish Kumar*

I met Munish Kumar* a few months back on Shaadi. Turns out he's been abroad for the last 20 odd years, stayed in multiple locations, well-educated and all that. He returned to India because his dad was diagnosed with cancer and he had to take care of the business. We started chatting and within a couple of days we were deeply in to each other. He was based out of Delhi but had business interests in Patna, Kolkata and elsewhere. Both of us had our birthdays in mid-May and were so similar, it was uncanny. Also, everything else seemed to be positive, in the sense that he earned well, lived on Shahjahan Road in New Delhi (people who're not familiar with Delhi, this is a very posh area), was half-Hindu and half-Christian, was smart, funny and charming and broad-minded enough to accept me the way I am.

He said he'd never been in a relationship with an Indian woman and he was apprehensive about trying it out but was forced to by his mom. On his profile, he'd mentioned that he was 37, had never been married (so obviously didn't have children!), didn't smoke, had a brother who was married. Most of it, as I found out later, was untrue. He smoked, had an illegitimate daughter in Bangkok, which is where he'd been staying before moving back to India, and was a couple of years older than he'd mentioned and neither did he have a brother.

Anyway, coming back to my story - he asked me to fly down to Patna to meet him and I did. He put me up in a hotel for the weekend and was generally infatuated with me as I was with him. To cut a long story short, we met a couple of other times and we agreed we were in a relationship. He had even said he'd meet my family and I told him to take his time, which was my biggest mistake (or not, depending on how you look at it).

A few months in to the relationship, I felt the beginnings of strain creeping in. I asked him if he wasn't interested and he said that he was just busy with work. This went on for about two months. I wanted to meet him and talk but he was being very evasive. Last month, he said he'd meet me, and made plans to go partying with me and a friend of mine. He said a friend of his, Sameer, would join us too, so we'd have a nice group to hang out in. He didn't turn up ultimately, ostensibly because of work.

He got in touch with me a few days back saying he was going to be in Mumbai and if I wanted to meet him. Of course, I was thrilled! I thought it'd give me an opportunity to talk to him and sort things out. Little did I know what was in store.

I kept calling him the evening we were supposed to meet and he didn't take my calls. Finally, a girl picked up the phone. She asked me who I was and what did I want to talk to him about. I was in a daze. I think my brain had picked up signals that my heart didn't want to believe. Nevertheless, I told her my name, and she claimed she had heard of me and seen my pics. I was intrigued because I had no clue who she was. Then she asked me if we were dating, and I asked her to ask him that question. She said she'd give the phone to him, when the line was disconnected. I was devastated.

I called back. He didn't take my call the first few times, but then picked up, I guess at her insistence. He was rude and brash and asked me what I wanted. I demanded an answer. He said he was "with her." I asked him what he meant by that. He said he was dating her and was engaged. I wanted to know why he didn't tell me this all this while. He said he didn't have an opportunity and wanted to meet me. He said I should've figured it out myself because he was being distant.

The other girl was apparently in shock. She wanted to speak with me and hear my side of the story. I don't know if she believed me or not, but seemed like she had no idea he was two-timing both of us. I hope wherever she is, she has the sense to walk out and get away from such a jerk. As for me, I am still trying to come to terms with it all. But I know I have given up on online matchmaking.

*Names have been changed not to protect their privacy but only to protect myself from unwanted lawsuits.