I’ve got a few Indian friends and interestingly enough most were married not long after graduating university. One gentleman in particular is in an unenviable position currently - his mum is putting a great deal of effort into finding him a wife.
There’s nothing wrong with a mother wanting to help her son out, but when he’s not even thinking about marriage then there’s a complication.
So this friend is scheduled to fly to India in April for a relative’s wedding, but that’s not all. His parents figure that whilst they are over there he can go meet a few potentials that they’ve lined up beforehand. So every week he’s been getting printouts of Internet profiles handed to him as he walks in the door, or his mother conveniently leaves them on his bed to be discovered.
One night at dinner he brought some of the profiles along, and we had a great time reading them. You see, the profiles are uploaded by the parents of the potential brides, not the girls themselves. Some of the criteria set for potential husbands were hilarious, because they were so specific ie. right down to the height requirements, type of career, income earned, and other things. Here is a sample profile.
One blogger compared arranged marriage with recruitment. From what my friend has been telling me it really is like hiring somebody for a job. First, you review their applications (resumes, Internet profiles, etc). You then shortlist potential candidates and then you have the formal interview. It’s all about expectation and what is accepted within the culture. Refer here for a guy’s first hand account of the process (quite funny).
From a Western perspective the concept of arranged marriages may seem a little strange, or completely against everything that is expected from entering such a commitment. However having done some reading on the topic, I can appreciate the merits of the practice. This blogger offers one perspective on the topic.
On the flip side, not all arranged marriages are successful. That may be due to lack of mutual attraction. Refer here for yet another perspective on this.
Though I don’t deny that love should play a big part in any marriage, it does not guarantee success in a marriage. I think it’s equally important to find compatibility in order to avoid the dreaded statistic of high divorce rates in Western society.
Having said all that, I still wouldn’t want to enter into an arranged marriage and thank goodness it’s not a big thing in my parents’ (Laotian) culture. They’ll be happy enough if I just get married sometime within the next decade! 
I’ll leave you with an observation provided by Lira. It was a discussion between his girlfriend and her Indian friend (who was studying abroad):
One day, my girlfriend saw her (Indian) friend moping around, and decided to have a word with her. IF stands for "Indian Friend" and LG stands for Lira’s girlfriend:
LG: What’s wrong?
IF: I don’t know… all my friends are getting married and here I am, studying overseas.
LG: You’re still young, don’t worry.
IF: Yeah, maybe. Hey, how do you find yourself a husband in Brazil?
LG: Heh? Basically, you meet a person, hangs out with him and, if you like him - you marry him.
IF: What if the guy you like doesn’t like you back?
LG: Well, you need to keep looking.
IF: What if you keep looking and doesn’t find anything you like?
LG: Then you’re not getting married, I suppose.
IF: Ah… thanks, I feel much better now. I’m so lucky that my parents are looking for some really nice guy to marry me! I wonder how sad it would be not to know whether I’d ever find someone who would protect, cherish and share a life with me.
LG: Erm…
IF: It’s a shame you have to look for yourself though. You’ve made my day, though, thank you!
LG: !?