? ON THE TUBE TONIGHT-
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Why pick between marrying for love or gawaz salonat when you can do both? Love is Blind, a Netflix dating show that first premiered in the US in 2020, has become an international sensation, adapted to eight different versions including Love is Blind: Brazil, Love is Blind: Sweden, and most recently, Love is Blind: Habibi. Set in the UAE, this version caters to contestants and viewers from all over the Middle East.

The set-up: The premise of the show is finding love without being distracted by the material — namely physical appearances — pushing the contestants to form deeper connections based on character. To achieve this, the men and women participating have private conversations on either side of a wall in individual pods. They go on multiple of these “dates,” and speak to each other without seeing the person in the other pod. Once two contestants decide to be together, they are married within four weeks.

What to expect, habibi? The inclusion of Arabs from various countries and backgrounds makes for interesting dates. We see contestants with traditional Arab values disagree with people with more modern, westernized ways of living, and not just between couples. There are working women who will choose their careers above all else, and more conservative women who are looking for a provider to take care of. Some of the men are possessive and advise the other male contestants against speaking to certain women they’ve taken a liking to — approximately 3 minutes into the pod date — and others who describe themselves as womanizers.

Usually it’s only up to the couple to decide to get married, but Arab conventions tweak the rules a little. If love matches are formed, the parents’ blessing is still necessary. Once everyone’s squared away (if no one has changed their mind), the couple is brought to tie the knot (or break the bond) in front of a ma’zoon on set.

WHERE TO WATCH- You can watch the show on Netflix or watch the trailer on YouTube (runtime: 1:28).

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