Matleena, a textile designer, knew Premanand was the one for her when she first saw him. In 2005, she visited India with her friend, and the pair ended up in Goa. “I remember sitting in a small village in Chapora,” she says. “I saw this man riding a motorcycle without a shirt and black, curly hair. I turned to my friend and said I would not return to Finland until I got him.”
The couple fell in love, but the logistics of their relationship were complicated. For Premanand to relocate to Finland would be difficult: he was older and had owned a beachside restaurant for years, so he would have to start from scratch, learn the language, get a job, begin again. Then, Matleena became pregnant with their first child and gave birth in Finland; Premanand first met their daughter at Delhi airport when she was three months old. Matleena also gave birth to her next two children in Finland, and Premanand met them at different airports for the first time.![]()
she jokes. For their fourth and final baby, now two, Prema was there for the birth in Finland.
The couple decided that Matleena and the children should reside in Finland permanently for the sake of their schooling, meaning the family is apart in autumn and spring and travel to India for three months over Christmas. Premanand relocates to Finland for three months in the summer when he closes the restaurant during the Monsoon season. The arrangement is complicated. But, ultimately, “this is how we want to live,” says Matleena, who does dream of moving to India one day when her children have grown up.
The couple fell in love, but the logistics of their relationship were complicated. For Premanand to relocate to Finland would be difficult: he was older and had owned a beachside restaurant for years, so he would have to start from scratch, learn the language, get a job, begin again. Then, Matleena became pregnant with their first child and gave birth in Finland; Premanand first met their daughter at Delhi airport when she was three months old. Matleena also gave birth to her next two children in Finland, and Premanand met them at different airports for the first time.
“I call my children, ‘airport children',”
The couple decided that Matleena and the children should reside in Finland permanently for the sake of their schooling, meaning the family is apart in autumn and spring and travel to India for three months over Christmas. Premanand relocates to Finland for three months in the summer when he closes the restaurant during the Monsoon season. The arrangement is complicated. But, ultimately, “this is how we want to live,” says Matleena, who does dream of moving to India one day when her children have grown up.
Matleena, a textile designer, knew Premanand was the one for her when she first saw him. In 2005, she visited India with her friend, and the pair ended up in Goa. “I remember sitting in a small village in Chapora,” she says. “I saw this man riding a motorcycle without a shirt and black, curly hair. I turned to my friend and said I would not return to Finland until I got him.”
The couple fell in love, but the logistics of their relationship were complicated. For Premanand to relocate to Finland would be difficult: he was older and had owned a beachside restaurant for years, so he would have to start from scratch, learn the language, get a job, begin again. Then, Matleena became pregnant with their first child and gave birth in Finland; Premanand first met their daughter at Delhi airport when she was three months old. Matleena also gave birth to her next two children in Finland, and Premanand met them at different airports for the first time.![]()
she jokes. For their fourth and final baby, now two, Prema was there for the birth in Finland.
The couple decided that Matleena and the children should reside in Finland permanently for the sake of their schooling, meaning the family is apart in autumn and spring and travel to India for three months over Christmas. Premanand relocates to Finland for three months in the summer when he closes the restaurant during the Monsoon season. The arrangement is complicated. But, ultimately, “this is how we want to live,” says Matleena, who does dream of moving to India one day when her children have grown up.
The couple fell in love, but the logistics of their relationship were complicated. For Premanand to relocate to Finland would be difficult: he was older and had owned a beachside restaurant for years, so he would have to start from scratch, learn the language, get a job, begin again. Then, Matleena became pregnant with their first child and gave birth in Finland; Premanand first met their daughter at Delhi airport when she was three months old. Matleena also gave birth to her next two children in Finland, and Premanand met them at different airports for the first time.
“I call my children, ‘airport children',”
The couple decided that Matleena and the children should reside in Finland permanently for the sake of their schooling, meaning the family is apart in autumn and spring and travel to India for three months over Christmas. Premanand relocates to Finland for three months in the summer when he closes the restaurant during the Monsoon season. The arrangement is complicated. But, ultimately, “this is how we want to live,” says Matleena, who does dream of moving to India one day when her children have grown up.
