Ladies in Mumbai and Pune can now "rent a boyfriend", literally. An entrepreneur has come up with an app -- Rent A Boyfriend (RABF) -- that offers "boyfriends" in exchange for money.
While the idea may appear extremely weird to many, the founder of the app is of the opinion that this service will help women fight depression.
The RABP app was launched recently in Mumbai and Pune. One can choose a "boyfriend" from a list of some good-looking guys, at prices ranging from Rs 3000 to Rs 400. "You can rent a celebrity for Rs 3,000, or a model for up to Rs 2,000, or an aam aadmi (commoner) for just Rs 300-400 per hour," 29-year-old founder of the app, Kaushal Prakash told DNA. It has a list of boys from the age of 20-25, and also some 55-year-old guys.
There will be no sexual intimacy or private meetings, he added. However, the "boyfriends" on the app are seen flaunting their abs, posing shirtless in their profiles.
Prakash said that the "rented boyfriends" will engage in interesting conversations with the customers while meeting them at dinner or lunch dates. They are also apparently "skilled" in offering "emotional advice" to the ladies, who suffer from any kind of depression.
Nonetheless, the minimum criteria to qualify for the job is just 10th or 12th standard pass out. Other criteria to apply for the job are they must be "friendly, outgoing, exciting, energetic, good communication skills", and of course good looks. The candidates' criminal records are also checked, he said.
The founder said that the idea of coming up with this service came to his mind from his own experiences, as he claims to be a victim of depression once. The service also extends to telephonic "psychiatric consultation" in exchange for money. Prakash believes that it is still a taboo in India to visit a psychiatrist, and hence the victims can address their issues more easily through the telephone.
Men may wonder why is the service available exclusively for ladies, and why no "girlfriends" available on rent. Prakash said that "rent a girlfriend sounds weird in India", and he is not sure about ensuring the safety of "girlfriends".
When asked about the safety of the "boyfriends", Prakash said that no girl would misbehave in public, and still, his app has a "red alert" option for the boys in case something wrong happens.
The app has already created a debate on social media as many not only felt the idea to be regressive but also felt that it made a mockery of a serious issue like depression.
