It’s Finally Happening!

We first matched online via Eharmony in May 2015, and we began getting to know each other with long video chats, phone calls and messaging. The internet really kept us constantly connected. In front of the airport in Delhi in June 2016, we met IRL for the first time, yet it felt like we had known each other for years. Raaj’s family welcomed a stranger to their family with open arms. Little did we know then, all the many obstacles we would face to be together. After a longer stay in 2017 and 2018, finding it difficult to navigate Indian marriage laws, we applied for a fiance Visa in 2018 for Raaj to come to Texas. He was finally given an interview at the embassy in Mumbai in July 2019, the final step in the ever lengthy Visa process. We thought my presence at the the interview would help. It did not.

Many couples in this world have been separated by the Covid 19 pandemic-we are not alone in this. Our families have suffered watching and waiting with us. Even more difficult than the 8,000+ miles that stand between us, are the hurdles set by all the paperwork and the seemingly endless waiting for a Fiance Visa. It has been almost unbearable for us at times. We met the State Department’s demands for more “proof” of our relationship after the failed interview in 2019. All we could do was wait for them to process our appeal. Then, in March 2020, just when we thought the Visa might be granted, the world shut down.

Even with all the uncertainty in the world, and the continually changing travel restrictions, we are making tentative plans…we just cannot wait any longer! So, with whispered prayers and fingers crossed, we will meet in a neutral third country to “make it legal”! We hope you can join us as we take this next step in our journey, to create a shared life together. Despite these long years of separation, we are as determined as ever to make it happen!