He turned around and fell in love: Indian-Chinese couple get married at Taoist temple where they first met

Theirs is a love story that began with a simple prayer made in a temple.

When 26-year-old Rishi Kumar first saw the woman who would be his wife six years ago, he knew she was 'the one'.

Just seconds before they met, he had offered prayers towards finding wealth and a life partner at the Lorong Koo Chye Sheng Hong Temple, located at 15 Arumugam Road, near MacPherson MRT.

His eyes found her the moment he turned around. The woman, identified by Shin Min Daily News as Jiang Huiyi, was working at the temple then.

Rishi, who's of Indian ethnicity but speaks fluent Mandarin, told the Chinese evening daily that it was love at first sight.

He took it as a sign and immediately walked over to get to know Huiyi.

Despite Rishi's best efforts, however, the pair got together only slightly over a year ago on Jan 14, 2021, after a five-year courtship.

The reason was due to their age gap as Huiyi was 24 and Rishi was just 20 then. Huiyi, a clerk, thought the latter was too young to be in a relationship, reported Shin Min Daily News.

But Rishi did not give up.

Whenever he was free, he would go to the temple to pray and also chat with Huiyi. 

"I persisted for five years before we eventually got together," said Rishi, who currently works as an insurance broker.

Of his fluency in Mandarin, Rishi explained that he has many Chinese friends and picked up the language "over the years just by listening".

Fast forward to the present, the couple finally got married last Friday (Oct 21). The venue? None other than Lorong Koo Chye Sheng Hong Temple, of course.

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When making plans for their wedding, the pair were in agreement that the ceremony should be held at the place where they first met.

The wedding was presided over by the chairman of the Taoist Federation (Singapore), Tan Thiam Lye.

Huiyi shared that as her father is the director of the Lorong Koo Chye Sheng Hong Temple, he had made the request to Tan to officiate the ceremony.

"We're very thankful that he agreed," said Huiyi.

Their inter-ethnic ceremony which was witnessed by family members of the bride and groom, was highlighted in a Facebook post by the temple on Friday.

In photos shared by the association, both Rishi and Huiyi looked resplendent in their wedding outfits, with Huiyi in a traditional red kwa and Rishi dressed in a blue suit.

Many commenters offered their warmest well-wishes to the couple, with one noting, "when fate beckons, you can't hide no matter how hard you try".

ALSO READ: Couple decides to get married 4 months after meeting virtually on livestream

candicecai@asiaone.com