BBC Three's Strictly Soulmates

BBC Three brings to the surface another topic which most of us are scared to talk about these days. Marriage. But even better, they intertwined it with religious case studies in this four part series, which reveals much about how one looks for a partner in Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Hinduism.
The Christian episode introduced Richard Kays, a TV presenter who spreads the word of Jesus, and on the side is giving himself a year to find the perfect spouse. His failure juxtaposed with Katy's success in meeting a American religious young man who ticks all her boxes, reinstates that faith is crucial to this search. These Brits were not disheartened, rather gained more momentum in their faith that God would find them a suitable partner. 


As was the case with Zubair, a young Muslim who was eager to be married before moving to Pakistan for charity work. Yet disappointment was around the corner for him too, when one suitor refused to move to Pakistan. Dimpy, another modern Muslim, struggled accepting anyone who was not a doctor, and who ticked all her boxes and her dead fathers'. Throughout the series, this problem was a constant. This idea of no one being able to fulfil this imaginary list of perfection was not realistic and was the reason most cases did not work out. 

In the episode on Judaism, Richard did find someone suitable for him, yet the fact that she was not Jewish caused a rift in their relationship. And finally a happy ending with the Hinduism episode where Hazmita marries a man she met through a family member who lives all the way in Dubai. 


This was a highly interesting series with much insight into why many religious youth are not married yet, the idea that you must marry early, how hard it actually is, and the small number of successful couples.  It also revealed how stressful finding a suitable partner is, and the pressure many people feel because of their families at times. However, a willingness to keep trying was apparent by most unmarried cases.