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Jab We Met: 'We fell in love without meeting each other'

We had invited you, our readers to share your love story this Valentine's Day.

Here, reader Bhavna Pandey tells us the story of how she fell in love with Santosh without meeting him and how their relationship culminated in marriage.

Being a fat and not-so-beautiful girl, all marriage proposals sent through my parents for me were eventually getting rejected.

I became so depressed when I realised that there was no one to acknowledge my love and feelings. There were times when my parents also cursed me but the truth was that nobody was there to understand and love me.

I had sleepless nights and would cry because my family did not support me in these tough times.

Back then, I was working in a small company owned by my uncle and had wanted a job change.

When I found a good opportunity in a big organisation, I joined the company in their Noida office. This company had branches all over India and my job profile demanded that I co-ordinate with people from all the branches.

At the Pune branch, our point of contact was Santosh Pandey with whom I was famous for long hour fighting over professional issues.

One working Sunday, when the work pressure was lesser, I had logged in through Hotmail Chat, which all other employees also used for office related communication.

While browsing the Internet, Santosh who was on my Hotmail list, suddenly pinged me and we started chatting. We exchanged our personal numbers and became friends.

Soon, he started sending me text messages and somehow I felt that he was flirting with me which I really did not appreciate.

So I lied to him that I was engaged and would soon get married. Since then, he stopped communicating with me and all we discussed was work.

On the other hand, issues at home had become horrible. It became difficult to stay at home because both my parents and brother would curse me.

I was not happy and even people had started asking why I had become so sad. I became very quiet and going to office was the only respite for me.

My friend also took me to an astrologer to predict my future. Though I did not believe in such things, I went along with her to pass my time.

The astrologer said: "The person who will marry you has already entered your life."

Suddenly I received a message from an unknown number. (I had deleted Santosh's number from my phone a month back after that episode).

When I returned the call, I realised that it was Santosh and he complained that I had forgotten him.

After this we started talking over the phone, and continued sending text messages to each other every morning and night. We would chat with each other till the time we remained in office.

This began in October 2005 and by the end of December, we had become very close friends even without seeing each other.

One day, he asked me to share my photograph which I refused instantly because I thought he may not talk to me after seeing my picture.

But when he insisted, I attached a profile picture along with Hotmail chat.

He said he did not find any problem in me and that I was a beautiful girl, and more beautiful by heart. I still thought he must be flirting with me.

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'We were 100 per cent committed'

On December 22, 2005 Santosh sent me a romantic text message in the morning.

I asked him whether he was falling in love and he replied 'yes'.

In the evening he expressed his love and added that I could be his friend but he could not love me. I did not say anything.

On December 23 we didn't speak to each other through the day.

On 24th, he said that he could love me but not marry.

And on Christmas, he said: "I can't live without you and will marry only you."

I told him he was saying all this because he had not seen me yet. I told him I was sure that all his love and feelings of marriage would vanish when he'd see me for real.

To which he said, "If you can trust me, I will not change. I am a very simple and honest person."

He said "Talk to your parents. I am sending my friend to your home with the marriage proposal"

When his friend visited my home, my parents insulted him badly because though we were of the same caste, I belonged to a rich family while he came from a lower middle class background and had a huge family to support.

After this incident, I requested him to forget me and marry someone else. But he refused. Then he decided to come and meet my parents in Delhi.

I was excited and furious at my parents for rejecting him. On February 21, 2006, we met for the first time. I found him to be a good looking and honest guy.

He expressed his true love for me and made me feel comfortable in his company.

He also promised to marry me.

When he met my parents, they rejected him on financial grounds.

My parents again rejected him on money and family matters and rejected him.

But we were 100 per cent committed to each other.

There was no problem from his family's side and had I started talking to his mother and sisters.

I had prayed a lot that we come together and that came true. As days passed, both of us became emotionally attached and bonded with each other, so much for a relation that started over the phone.

Each time my parents found a match for me, the rejections kept coming which increased the tense atmosphere at home.

At one point, they even tried to distract me through false stories about Santosh.

My mother said that my uncle had visited him and found him to be a cheap guy who is interested in my money.

In July, when I shared this with my cousin, she was shocked and surprised. She told me that if someone was accepting me the way I was, there should be no problem.

My cousin spoke to her father and he immediately spoke to Santosh and fixed a meeting with him in Pune. (Incidentally, this was the same uncle whose name my mother had used previously to implicate Santosh).

Santosh and I were tensed about the meeting. But after meeting him, my uncle said that he is the perfect guy for me and I will be happy with him.

He promised to convince my parents for marriage and in case my parents disagreed, he will arrange a court marriage.

My uncle managed to convince my parents and we got engaged on September 30, 2006 (We were meeting for the second time after our first meeting in February).

We got married on November 2, 2006.

Santosh did not take even a single penny in dowry from my parents and promised to fund everything.

It has been more than six years since we got married and we are still together and very happy.

Now my father tells everyone in our family that he is proud of his son-in-law and that he is the best.