Hindustan Times (Patna) - Hindustan Times (Patna) - Live
L(ink)ed with love: Couple tattoos narrate stories of forever bonds
Divya Tiwari is a banker in Pune and Himadri Saha is a relationship manager with a travelling agency in Delhi. Theirs could have been just another long-distance relationship, had it not been for the couple tattoo that connects them. They are one of the many couples who recently got themselves inked to seal their bond. And fuelling the trend is the love in the air during Valentine’s week.
Tiwari says, “My boyfriend and I got the tattoo made together. We took the last four letters of his first name and the last two of mine to form the word ‘Adriya’, which means strong. We wanted that whatever we got inked has a meaning and reflects our relation. When we e together, it’s this tattoo we llook k at and feel both of us are close to each other, though we live miles apart.”
For Mumbai-based finance manager Anshul Malhotra, representing the significance of phone calls through a tattoo was more important than the distance between his US-based beloved Maria. Now married, the duo lives in Mumbai and fondly recalls the memories inked on their arms. Maria, a martial arts trainer, says, “Two years ago he liked a picture of me on Instagram and we started talking. We hardly met in person and were mostly on phone during our relationship. So, after we got married, we thought of a couple tattoo as my birthday gift. Our tattoo has stick figures representing us and a string that connects.”
Not all couple tattoos, however, are born out of happy stories. A 17-year-old girl from Mumbai, who doesn’t wish to be named says, “My girlfriend got a tattoo of my name in Korean to surprise me on my birthday, I got one of Ursa Minor constellation to reflect her name based on a star, as a surprise on hers. My parents haven’t approved of our relationship. After a fight with my parents we briefly broke up. This tattoo shows nothing can separate us.” Couple tattoos are a resurgent trend, but with a twist. “Couples now don’t just go for their partner’s name, but opt to tell their love story,” says Vikas Malani, a tattoo artist with studios in Delhi and Mumbai.
Ivana Belakova, a US-based tattoo artist, says “best friends, mums and daughters, sisters” also opt for couple tattoos. Malani cites four generations — a greatgrandmother, grandmother, mother and two daughters — he linked with tattoos of OM and a peacock feather, due to their love for Krishna. “People feel matching tattoos bond them for life,” adds Belakova.