Ajitha Reddy and Yogesh Kumar the founders of Hamstech Institute of Fashion and Interior Design fell in love when they were pursuing their B.Tech degrees.
When asked if it was love at first sight, Ajitha says, “It really wasn’t. We had common friends and kept bumping into each other. What attracted me to him was his humour and quick wit. It was definitely not his looks. He wasn’t well-dressed back then. He became better only later.” But Yogesh says he was mesmerised by her beauty. “She was very pretty, bold, forthcoming and outspoken,” he says.
However, they don’t remember falling in love, because they were best friends. “In 1986, I was barely 16 and he was 17; it was a cute phase. We didn’t even realise when we fell in love,” says Ajitha.
One fine day, Yogesh proposed to her. “I was very clear that I wanted to marry her. But she asked me for some time as she wanted to think about it.”
After much consideration, Ajitha realised that Yogesh fit the bill on what she wanted in a man. “These days, we think so much about the caste and culture, but when we started dating, I never thought of us from the point that he was a Punjabi and I, a Reddy girl.”
Were there any objections from parents? “No. Initially, they were taken by surprise, but once they came to know that we were clear about our choice, they accepted us. Unfortunately, Yogesh’s father passed away before we got married.”
The couple got married the Arya Samaj way.
“The pandit there had a beautiful style of getting us married. One part of the wedding was the Saptapadi in which we had to take seven steps with a vow for each one. He made us hold hands and I had to put my hand on Yogesh’s heart. There was a sense of belongingness, like I was truly getting united to him,” recalls Ajitha.
“I was embracing her and the pandit asked us to look into each other’s eyes. That was a very romantic moment,” adds Yogesh.
Has life changed after marriage for Ajitha? “I was the second of three daughters and was very carefree. I never had any important responsibilities because my mum was super organised and would handle everything on her own. Coming from such a family to another, where my mother-in law could barely take care of anything, I became responsible at 21. Yogesh was the sole breadwinner and I had to take charge of the house.”
Yogesh says, “We dated for four-and-a-half years before getting married. We were open to discussions and arguments. Till date, we have never prolonged our fights.”
