In a quiet bar in Delhi's Hauz Khas last December, a young man was unaware he was being watched. His shadow, a private investigator, documented his every move. The next morning, photos landed in the inbox of a concerned father in Noida. They showed his daughter's fiancé meeting another man, drinking together, and then checking into a nearby boutique hotel. The father's suspicion, sparked by the boy's evasive eye contact during family meetings, was tragically confirmed.
The Third 'P' in Wedding Planning: The Private Eye
The wedding was promptly called off. Tanya Puri, CEO of Lady Detectives India, revealed the man confessed to having a long-term boyfriend and had planned to continue the relationship even after marriage. This case is emblematic of a significant shift. Beyond the pandit and the planner, a third 'P'—the private detective—is now an active player in India's pre-matrimonial ecosystem.
Driven by the explosion of online dating, requests for pre-commitment background checks are flooding detective agencies, fast catching up to traditional cases of spousal infidelity. Industry insiders note these requests have almost doubled in recent years. Rahul Rai Gupta of Delhi's Detective Guru attributes this to the nature of modern urban relationships. "These days, many people are meeting online. Rishtas don't just come from acquaintances anymore," he says, highlighting the anonymity of metropolitan life where migrants often know little of each other's backgrounds.
Unmasking Deception: From Fake Families to Fraudulent Fortunes
The investigations often uncover startling deceptions. Puri recounts a case where a Delhi family grew suspicious of a woman's inconsistent stories about her hometown and education. The probe revealed a meticulously constructed sham: the woman had a fake father, mother, and brother. The person posing as her brother even had molestation charges against him. The group was part of a scam that had duped another family in Maharashtra, extracting gifts before vanishing pre-wedding.
In another instance, a pre-matrimonial check saved a woman from a sophisticated romance scam. Her online partner projected an image of immense wealth—branded clothes, luxury cars, and a birthday party at a purported farmhouse in Chhatarpur. Detectives discovered the reality: he lived in a 1BHK with a flatmate, and every symbol of his wealth, from the cars to the farmhouse, was rented. "He was pretending to be wealthy to marry rich," Puri states.
Other common falsehoods include inflated job titles—claiming to be a managing director while actually an assistant manager—or fabricating educational credentials from premier institutes like IIT or IIM.
Evolving Tools and Enduring Demand
While pre-wedding checks surge, the industry's mainstay remains investigating married couples, from adultery to financial concealment in alimony cases. Sanjeev Kumar of DDS Detective Agency in Delhi cites a case where a wife claimed zero income for higher alimony. Surveillance proved she went to an office daily. Puri also solved a case where an investigator posed as a vegetable seller for a month to confirm a husband's affair with the domestic help.
The methods have evolved dramatically. From bulky cameras pre-2010, detectives now use discreet tech like glasses, pens, and buttons with hidden cameras. Software allows phones to record while appearing switched off. Social media is a primary tool. "Our investigation begins on a laptop," says Gupta, whose team uses fake dating app profiles to check a subject's willingness to cheat.
However, Puri emphasizes a crucial limit: detectives can only provide evidence gathered through surveillance, not private data like CCTV footage or call records. The proof is circumstantial but powerful, increasingly sought by individuals who prefer a practical check over living with nagging suspicion in an era where love often starts with a swipe.
