Bumble, the women-first dating app, revealed findings from its Love Unfiltered Report that shows how GenZers are reevaluating what dating means to them. Findings from Bumble’s new research in India show GenZ are vocal about values and are motivated to go after what they want when it comes to romance, are breaking away from traditional dating norms, and challenging outdated, gendered relationship expectations. GenZ daters in India are approaching love with clarity, emotional maturity, and radical honesty.
Bumble’s report shares interesting insights into the impact of pop-culture such as social media, music, food, literature and content consumption on GenZ dating ideals. Bumble’s new study* reveals new dating trends such as Open Casting and FONMO (no-FOMO) that spotlight how GenZ is redefining dating in India in 2023.
The selfish generation? Not quite, GenZ in India are just honest
GenZ daters are honest, conscious and intentional in their dating goals. Refreshingly, they are not hesitant to challenge the status quo and date on their own terms and timelines. As GenZ choose more values-driven dating decisions, they are leaning towards putting themselves first, setting boundaries and expressing their authentic selves. It comes as no surprise that GenZ considers being honest and upfront about dating intentions (52%) as their top dating green flag. In fact, 21% of GenZ respondents say not aligning politically with their partners is a dating red flag and 19% won't date someone who is not an LGBTQ+ ally.
Open Casting (opposite of ‘type-casting’)
It’s time to do away with the tall, dark, and handsome requirements as the narrow search for our physical ‘type’ is not serving GenZ. The opposite of type-casting, open casting refers to how people are now more open to who they consider dating beyond their ‘type’. 38% of GenZ respondents believe that love comes in different shapes and sizes, meaning they are open to date outside their ‘type’, and this is more relevant for women (41%) than men ( 37%) in India.
FONMO (No FOMO): The Gen that’s not scared to miss out
GenZers are unafraid to take a backstep from outdated societal norms and don’t mind waiting for a partner who understands and shares their values and beliefs. In fact, 51% Indian GenZ respondents are looking for someone who helps or will grow with them.
About 1 in 3 (29%) Indian GenZ respondents believe in no set timelines for marriage, they’ll take their own time.
19% Indian GenZ respondents say they don’t believe in traditional relationship stages, if it feels right, they will date someone immediately.
GenZ, women in particular, are being intentional about who and how they want to date. GenZ women are leaving societal conditioning at the door, as 46% of GenZ women are no longer willing to put up with toxic behaviours.** While searching for their partners, over half of GenZ women (55.5%) are prioritising establishing boundaries, both emotional and physical.
Samarpita Samaddar, India Communications Director, Bumble shares, “GenZ daters in India are throwing away the rulebook and taking charge of their dating journeys. GenZers today are not ‘quiet-quitting’ really, in fact, they are being vocal about what they believe in, challenging antiquated dating norms and relationship expectations. It’s refreshing to see an entire generation putting themselves first, clearly setting and respecting boundaries. We want to empower people to date on their own terms and pace. Using Interest Badges on Bumble you can showcase your lifestyle, values, and social causes that you can champion like environmentalism, human rights, and feminism among others. If you’re looking for someone like-minded, know that Bumble’s got your back!”
How does social media and its trends impact GenZ dating ideals?
Social media is this generation’s hotspot for self-expression. Growing popularity of social media and its trends (for e.g. soft-launching your partner online to first date selfies) are also impacting GenZ dating expectations and experiences, thus shaping their approach to modern romance. Bumble reveals how social media and its trends influences GenZ dating ideals:
Vibe Check: 33% of Indian GenZ respondents use social media to find out if a potential partner's interests and lifestyle matches theirs
Trending romance: 31% of Indian GenZ respondents want to take part in social media trends with their partner
Social Media Matters: 27% of Indian GenZ respondents want someone they are dating to post about them on their social media and 23% Indian GenZ respondents judge their date based on their social media presence
What’s making dating hard for GenZ?
For 50% of GenZ, balancing their career and love life is the biggest challenge, followed by commitment (37%) and finding a partner who meets their expectations (49%) are other concerns when it comes to dating. 38% of Indian GenZ struggle to find someone who shares the same sexual and emotional preferences and for 29% facing rejections is another challenge as they navigate dating in India.
