Invited Business Guest & Accidental Marriage in Sri Lanka

Coincidentally, during a wedding in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Tin ran into Jeevan Gnanam - the tech entrepeneur and founder of Hatch (coworking space), and got an invite to their facilities for a tour and presentation of their works. It was also here, Tin accidentally got married to a man called Arjun (according to Indian customs) - we will get back to that!

In 2018, Tin was called in at the last minute to fill a seat and entertain the Sri Lankan delegation of tech entrepreneurs in an eight course meal in Oslo. It was here Tin met and befriended Jeevan Gnanam AND Mariyah Kaed (the future bride-to-be in which we will come back to later). Jeevan is a businessman & serial tech entrepreneur with a diversified background - but did tell Tin about his plans back in 2018 to set up a coworking space to encourage their own community of innovators, as Tin himself had gained attention for his work on the subject. Tin did not take Jeevan on the offer to come to Sri Lanka and see this development in 2018. This venture would go on to become the critically acclaimed Hatch, and is nothing less than aiming at promoting Sri Lankan talent pool and tech export to south Asia - the only one with the standing to do so.

In a happy coincidence, Tin would be invited to Sri Lanka half a decade later to Mariya’s wedding when he ran into Jeevan in the lobby of Shangri-la. Tin was then, invited to Hatch to hear out their investments, Sri Lanka’s strength and weaknesses in the South Asian market and their plans ahead. Tin also met up with the Hatch team for business development to see if Norwegian-Sri Lankan relations could be rekindled. Some of the photos from the tour:

Tin and Arjun’s “Wedding”

The real reason Tin travelled half the world around, was to attend Mariya and Arjun’s wedding - one of the attendees Tin befriended at that dinner with the Sri Lankan delegation in 2018 and the representative of the tech company, PayMedia from Sri Lanka. Fast-forward to the wedding 2023, and we arrive upon the moment where Tin both gained and lost his Indian husband.

For this excursion, Tin was paired up with Brendan (Arjun’s childhood friend) to go on epic adventures with, a dance act and as a bunkbed partner at various hotels. I also got to hang out with Arjun’s family and his aunties - truly the highest order of epic people. For the preparation of the wedding, together Tin and Brendan took meticulous notes in learning the secret art of Bollywood moves for their dance act. Tin also co-designed the wedding layout, by request of the bride herself. With a fullblown master degree in architecture, almost a decade-long competitive design and urban experience, an ongoing PhD in real estate technology, and with all his intellectual might - Tin was still being bossed around by Mariya in realising her vision for her wedding day, where the CAD drawing was 99.9% realised. Photos of how the layout and dance was intended on paper, and how it played out in real life:

Minutes before introducing the couple to the guests at the wedding, Tin was given the simple task of handing a varamala, a lotus flower garland. The varamala ritual is considered the most important ritual in Hindu weddings, as the exchange of this garland symbolises the acceptance of Mariya (bride) and Arjun (groom) as a married couple. However there was a slight misunderstanding, as the groom’s mother did not tell Tin the importance of this ritual, neither did she specify where to place this garland. At center stage, and at the most crucial moment in Mariya and Arjun’s wedding, Tin naturally enough, instantly placed the garland on Arjun’s neck. Making Tin and Arjun husband AND husband. Nobody knows if this every was rectified according to their Gods.

Jokes aside, reflecting upon this entire experience, I (Tin) was really not in the headspace of partaking in hers or any other people’s weddings for that matter. With an expansive network, you are also bound to have many people entering/exiting your “inner circle”. These are the feelings of leading what I myself consider fast-paced life of joys and thrills, ups-and-downs, and not least of inner turmoil. Seeing Mariya again brought back some unexpected continuity in my life and not least the lessons I was taught by just observing her interaction with her inner circle. The moment that had a profound healing effect on an otherwise cold and moody man, happened to be the genuine moment of Mariya with her man, and Arjun with his woman, going about their everyday chores as a married couple, buying something as mundane as moisturising cream.

Thanks for the invitation, Mariya, it meant the world.