‘We met through a dating app’. Archana Kavi spills the beans on her relationship with Rick

Actor Archana Kavi surprised her fans by announcing her wedding to Rick Varghese. In a recent Instagram story, the actor shared her happiness in finding the right person in her life. “I can proudly say that I’ve found the right person...I wish everyone could be that lucky,” Archana had written. Her admirers and colleagues in the movie industry also shared their wishes. In a recent interview with Dhanya Varma, Archana revealed that she and Rick met each other through a dating app. What began as a casual meeting soon bloomed into love, and the couple is now married.

“We often tend to believe those who face mental health issues will end up alone. But, that’s not true. I found an incredible man called Rick. And I am in love! We met through a dating app. I was in Kannur overseeing the construction of our house, which is located in a remote part of the forest. I started our conversation just to while away time. But we quickly connected and even began discussing our life together. It was like an invisible power trying to bring us together,” Archana said.
Archana reveals that she immediately opens up about her struggles and her traumas with people she meets. Though she cautions it as a bad strategy, she felt it was the only way to know if the person she was speaking to would abandon her.

“When it comes to mental health issues, people casually say everyone faces issues. But they turn away when we have panic attacks. It is easy for people to make promises. Rick too made similar promises in the beginning, but his words and actions matched. That is what made all the difference. My father pampered me a lot, though he was strict. My loved ones would always say I am a spoiled child and that my father sees a lot of potential in me. Rick was the only person who could see through my father’s love and said a father should treat his daughter like a princess. Rick treats me well, and no one has treated me like this before,” Archana said.
Rick had given Archana a ring before they got engaged. It was unique — matte on one side and glossy on the other. Through this  gift, Rick wanted to convey that while they were coming together as a couple, their individual identities would always remain intact.

Later, Rick flew down to Kerala to propose to her — a gesture that clearly showed how serious he was about their relationship. From that moment on, he began affectionately referring to Archana as his ‘wife’. In the interview, Archana also opened up about her past. She shared that she had been in a relationship with another man before meeting Rick.

“He was a good man, and things were going well between us,” she said. “At one point, he asked me to meet his parents. They wanted to see me alone, so I went. But it turned into an unpleasant experience. His mother told me she couldn’t gift me her saree because, according to her, I had nothing except my looks. She said, ‘We are an aristocratic family. This family is very different from yours.’ It was hurtful, but I stayed quiet — just like society teaches girls to silently bear everything. We're taught to become problem solvers the moment something goes wrong.”

Archana never shared this incident with Rick. “He told me he'd deal with his parents himself — that they were his responsibility,” she said. Rick had never been married before, but this was Archana’s second marriage. “You know how our society is,” she added. “But his parents have been incredibly kind to me. I’m a family-oriented person, and I’ve grown close to them as well. Naturally, I want to be close to my partner’s family. Rick’s father is such a kind man. He and his wife raised Rick with strong values and so much love. If you ask me why Rick is the way he is, it’s because of them. His mother is like a friend to me.”