Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hyphenly.beehiiv.com

Dating in 2025 feels harder than ever; apps are exhausting, hookup culture dominates, and rejection is everywhere. In this episode of Love-ly, host Mehak sits down with her friend Eric, a former competitive figure skater turned entrepreneur, to talk about love, dating, and connection in today’s world.

Eric shares his journey growing up as an only child, coming out, navigating family expectations, and why he’s waited for the right relationship instead of settling. Together, Mehak and Eric unpack the complexities of hookup culture, the allure of long-distance sparks, self-awareness in love, and why saying hello to strangers feels nearly impossible in modern dating.

If you’ve ever felt like the dating bar is “in hell” but still crave authentic connection, this heartfelt and funny conversation will remind you what love can look like in 2025.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]. Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hyphenly.beehiiv.com

What do Pedro Pascal, a bad Hinge date, and the rom-com Materialists have in common? They all expose the messy math of modern love. In this solo episode of Love-ly, Mehak spills on the good, the cringe, and the downright bizarre of dating in 2025, from men asking for exclusivity after a single dinner to the exhausting cycle of deleting and redownloading apps.

Along the way, she breaks down Materialists (starring Pascal, Dakota Johnson, and Chris Evans) and why movies keep trapping women in false binaries between money and passion, stability and desire. Spoiler: the real power move isn’t choosing him, it’s choosing yourself.

Funny, raw, and painfully relatable, this episode is for anyone who’s ever thought “if he wanted to, he would” and then realized capacity matters more than desire.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]. Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeling tired, moody, or breaking out for no reason? We thought it was just burnout—until we tried Function Health. Function tracks over 160 biomarkers, including hormones, stress, Vitamin D, and more, to help users understand what’s going on inside. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.functionhealth.com/LOVELY⁠⁠⁠⁠.

She’s back and she’s bringing the truth bombs! In her return to Love-ly, attorney, comedian, and Muslim Matchmaker star Yasmin Elhady sits down with Mehak for a hilarious, heartfelt, and brutally honest conversation about modern love. From dismantling silly dating “icks” to exposing overconfidence, Yasmin shares how self-trust, spirituality, and the “three A’s” attraction, admiration, and adoration shape healthy relationships. She opens up about protecting your energy, setting standards without closing your heart, and why confident women attract exactly the kind of partners they deserve. Whether you’re single, dating, or just here for the laughs, this one’s a must-listen.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]. Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hyphenly.beehiiv.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeling tired, moody, or breaking out for no reason? We thought it was just burnout—until we tried Function Health. Function tracks over 160 biomarkers, including hormones, stress, Vitamin D, and more, to help users understand what’s going on inside. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠www.functionhealth.com/LOVELY⁠⁠⁠.

This week on Love-ly, Mehak sits down with Izz, a Haitian-born, Montreal-based Muslim woman with a story that’s anything but predictable. From growing up between cultures to converting to Islam in her 20s, Izz shares how embracing faith helped her redefine her self-worth, navigate heartbreak, and ultimately walk away from a year-long situationship.

They get into the messiness of dating while trying to honor their values, what it means to set real boundaries, and why choosing yourself is the most underrated love story of all.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]. Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hyphenly.beehiiv.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeling tired, moody, or breaking out for no reason? We thought it was just burnout—until we tried Function Health. Function tracks over 160 biomarkers, including hormones, stress, Vitamin D, and more, to help users understand what’s going on inside. Learn more at ⁠⁠www.functionhealth.com/LOVELY⁠⁠.

Why do so many emotionally available men still feel lost in the dating world? This week on Love-ly, host Mehak sits down with Kavitha Ajwani, founder of Dashing Date, to unpack the myth of the “nice guy,” modern masculinity, and why emotional depth is the new dating currency. Kavitha shares her deeply personal story of love and loss — and how it shaped her powerful, purpose-driven coaching approach that helps men form genuine, lasting relationships.

Special Offer: Kavitha is gifting our listeners free access to her exclusive two-part masterclass, normally a paid program. You'll learn how to break out of Nice Guy Syndrome, embody “Kind King” energy, and confidently connect with women without the cringe. To access, DM our host’s name to @dashingdate on Instagram.

 Tap play for an honest, heartfelt, and profoundly empowering conversation about dating, identity, and the courage to be seen.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]. Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hyphenly.beehiiv.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeling tired, moody, or breaking out for no reason? We thought it was just burnout—until we tried Function Health. Function tracks over 160 biomarkers, including hormones, stress, Vitamin D, and more, to help users understand what’s going on inside. Learn more at ⁠www.functionhealth.com/LOVELY⁠.

Why is female pleasure still a whisper topic? This week on Love-ly, host Mehak sits down with Anna and Meredith Sweet from Tempt, a female-focused audio erotica app designed to close the pleasure gap and normalize intimate storytelling. From closed-door romance to steamy werewolf fantasies, Tempt offers a judgment-free zone for women to explore their desires on their terms. They dive into immigrant identity, intergenerational shame, and how romance novels are helping women reconnect with themselves and their partners.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whatthemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]. Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeling tired, moody, or breaking out for no reason? We thought it was just burnout—until we tried Function Health. Function tracks over 160 biomarkers, including hormones, stress, Vitamin D, and more, to help users understand what’s going on inside. Learn more at www.functionhealth.com/LOVELY.

In this episode of Love-ly, host Mehak sits down with Leanne Yau, British sex and relationship educator and the voice behind @polyphiliablog, to unpack the nuances of polyamory.

From her first open relationship at 17 to living non-hierarchically with multiple partners, Leanne shares her journey, debunks common misconceptions (like “polyamory is just for people bad at monogamy”), and explains terms like relationship hierarchy, relationship escalator, and relationship anarchy.

Whether you’re monogamish, poly-curious, or somewhere in between, this conversation offers a thoughtful and judgment-free look at how we define love, connection, and commitment.

You can find Leanne's content on YouTube (@PolyPhilia) and Instagram (@polyphiliablog).

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whatthemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]. Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hyphenly.beehiiv.com

This week’s Love-ly episode is a real one—like, voice-memo-real.

Teja brings receipts — literally. She plays us the actual breakup voice memo she sent this Hinge man (yes, he heard it, and now so will you), and unpacks what it taught her about communication, self-worth, and managing dating anxiety.

Our host, Mehak, offers her hot takes on why she never gives strangers the benefit of the doubt, and what it means to set standards in the age of soft boys and disappearing acts.

Romance, realness, and voice notes? Hit play.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak | Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]

 Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://immigrantlys-newsletter.beehiiv.com/subscribe⁠⁠

This week on Love-ly, Mehak sits down with the unapologetically charming Uzi for a wildly entertaining, refreshingly honest conversation about dating in the age of ghosting, rejection, and situationships. From chasing strangers by the waterfront to getting called out mid-flirt for shady texts, Uzi shares his unfiltered takes on confidence, emotional availability, and why being a “nice guy” sometimes backfires.

They get into the real stuff: what women often misunderstand about men, how to approach someone in real life without being weird, and whether liking bikini pics while cuffed is ever okay. Plus, Uzi opens up about immigrant identity, therapy, fake-it-till-you-make-it confidence, and why he’s pressing pause on dating for now.

If you've ever felt nervous shooting your shot or wondered if you’re too much or not enough, this episode is your sign to go for it.

Hit play. Share with your group chat. Maybe even send it to your situationship!

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak I Editorial Review: Saadia Khan I Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ApplePodcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]

 Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Subscribe to Hyphenly,  our new newsletter with hot takes, heartfelt stories, and all the feels of living in between cultures. Come for the nuance, stay for the vibes. ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://immigrantlys-newsletter.beehiiv.com/subscribe⁠⁠⁠

Ready to romanticize your single summer without the drama? In this solo episode, Mehak drops 10 must-hear reminders for anyone navigating love, loneliness, and Love Island obsessions. From dodging red flags in warm weather to why Snapchat is not a love language (seriously, stop), this is your emotional reset button. Whether you're solo or boo’d up, it’s time to pick peace, wear the bikini, eat the fries, and live your main character moment. Let’s make this the summer of you.

Hosted by: Mehak @whathemehak on TikTok and @whathemehak_ on IG

Producer: Saadia Khan and Shei Yu | Content Writers: Mehak I Editorial Review: Saadia Khan I Sound Designer & Editor: Lou Raskin I Love-ly Theme Music: Lou Raskin | Other Music: Epidemic Sound | Cover art design: Josephine Chai | Executive Producer: Saadia Khan

 Please share the love and leave us a review on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ApplePodcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to help more people find us! 

Don’t forget to subscribe!

 If you want to share your thoughts about this or other episodes, reach out at [email protected]

 Follow us: @immigrantlypods (IG) |@immigrantly (TikTok)

Love-ly is an Immigrantly Media Production.

For advertising inquiries, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices