As dating apps continue to dominate the landscape of modern relationships, with the online dating segment in India forecasted by Statista to reach 28.83 million users by 2028, marking an increase of 1.6 million users between 2024 and 2028, some communities are pushing back against swipe culture in favor of more intentional connections.
Delhi Reads — one of the country’s largest reading clubs (started during the COVID-19 lockdown and now boasting over 60,000 members aged 18–28) — teamed up with matchmaking platform Verona for Read Cute, an experiment to foster slower, more meaningful connections. Held in January in Delhi, instead of curated profiles consisting of photos and prompts, participants at the event were invited to connect over books, stories, and thoughtfully designed icebreakers like canvas exchanges inspired by written prompts, red flag/green flag rounds, and group discussions about fictional characters and dealbreakers.
Delhi reads
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SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The intimate event stood in stark contrast to the fast-paced world of digital dating. “As an introvert, dating apps often feel rushed and overwhelming,” said Bhavni Sikdar, 26, a participant based in Delhi. “The event offered a safe, intimate space to have meaningful conversations and build connections at a more natural pace. It reinforced my belief that friendship is a powerful foundation for something deeper.”
The success of this collaboration points to a quiet cultural shift: a growing desire for offline, organic ways to meet people. While Delhi Reads was never designed as a dating venue, its founders, Molina Singh and Paridhi Puri noticed early on that meaningful connections — romantic and platonic — began to emerge from the shared joy of reading and conversation. “If someone turns up solely to find love, rather than for the joy of reading and connection, it can dilute the spirit of the space,” they explain. “We’ve seen that the most meaningful relationships tend to evolve naturally, often rooted in a shared love for pop culture or books. It’s old-school in the best way, built on conversation, not curation.”
More than a swipe
In today’s age, dating apps offer algorithm-driven matches, curated profiles, and the illusion of unlimited choice. But, users often report feeling emotionally drained and disillusioned. The rise of ghosting, breadcrumbing, and benching — once niche terms, now mainstream — reflects a deeper fatigue: dating burnout. The abundance promised by swiping platforms often gives way to transactional exchanges, shallow connections, and a creeping sense of hollowness.
Bandra Reads
Bandra Reads
In Bengaluru, Cubbon Reads hosts weekly silent reading sessions that often end with post-session hangouts, conversations, and even romantic sparks. As founders Harsh Snehanshu and Shruti Sah share, “We saw many singletons coming to Cubbon Reads later arrive in pairs. They started dating, all thanks to the club.”
This phenomenon even led to the creation of Bookmark in the year 2023, a niche dating app where users connect first through book discussions, only revealing profile photos after exchanging ten thoughtful messages. Initially, the founders relied on word of mouth publicity in order to make the app popular but since January last year they have hosted several college events to popularise it further. The platform has prioritised compatibility through similar interests in books, each profile is structured like a book. The free version allows users to browse up to 5 profiles per day and send equal no. of likes. For users seeking further interaction, the premium version has additional features and can browse up to 30 profiles a day and like them as well. The app has over 15,000 installs and 5000 monthly active users.
In Mumbai, Bandra Reads, founded by Amie Fazulbhoy in 2023, meets every Sunday at Joggers Park and has organically grown into a 50-member community. Romantic connections have emerged there too, including one couple who got engaged after meeting through the club.
Cubbon Reads
Shreya*, 26, who regularly attends BYOB (Bring Your Own Book) meetups in Mumbai, found the event’s slower pace refreshing. BYOB Mumbai is the city chapter of a pan-India reading initiative that began in Delhi in 2015 and now has active communities in Mumbai, Bangalore, and Jamnagar. She explains the appeal: “Post-COVID, my social circle thinned out. Apps felt pretty draining. At BYOB, I met genuinely interesting people, some of whom I later dated. Those connections felt far more meaningful than endless swiping.”
Rohan Kumar, an active member of offline communities like Delhi Reads and a former dating app user, 28, from Delhi, echoes this shift: “Yeah, I’ve tried dating apps, but honestly, I find them too algorithmic. Everything seems transactional and based on looks. That doesn’t work for me. I think offline communities, like book clubs or hobby groups, are much better avenues. You see different sides of a person — how they think, how they interact, and that builds a foundation for a deeper connection.”
Cubbon Reads
At their heart, these communities offer what dating apps struggle to: context, continuity, and conversation. They replace performance-driven interactions with slower, organic ones, where trust can build over time. The Delhi Reads-Verona event was not an outlier — it was a reflection of a larger cultural longing: to be seen and known beyond algorithms and avatars. While swipe culture remains dominant, the rise of these intimate, unoptimized spaces hints at a possible future where love is sparked not by screens, but by shared ideas, laughter over book pages, and conversations that wander off the page and into real life.
[1] Name changed to protect the identity
Published – August 29, 2025 04:05 pm IST