After All That Dating Around, Gurki Basra Ended Up With the Show’s Director James Adolphus

Maybe there is hope after extremely awkward first dates (just not with the guy on said dates). Photo: Courtesy of Netflix

As it turns out, Gurki Basra, who had to endure one of the most awkward dates you can imagine on the first season of Dating Around, did decide to go on a second date with someone after all. On her Instagram, Basra has revealed that, after all that, she’s now dating James Adolphus, who directed her episode of the Netflix show. “If it hadn’t been for the bad Justin date, [James] and I would have probably never become close in the first place,� Basra explained in an interview with OprahMag.com. “After the date, I was upset and crying. He came up to me and gave me a hug, and checked on me on Instagram afterwards. That’s how he and I started talking.�

The two didn’t start dating until after the episode filmed, though they did end up sharing a scene together unintentionally — Basra’s episode ends with her deciding not to go on a second date with any of the men who she’d met up with, and there’s a shot where she walks down the street and smiles at a random handsome stranger. That’s Adolphus. “I didn’t actually know he was going to be in that scene. The smile is genuine, and me smiling and being surprised is genuine,� Basra said. They went on a date of their own and kept in touch after the show premiered, despite living on opposite sides of the country (he in L.A. and she in New York), but became serious once Basra moved to L.A. in the summer of 2019. Basra added that things got more serious once they quarantined together in March, and that’s when she decided to go public with the relationship.

There they are! Photo: Netflix

Both Adolphus and Basra have previously been married, and Basra told OprahMag.com, “We have baggage from past relationships we’re working through — all that fun stuff … It’s a cute and fun story, but there’s a lot of work in the day in, day out. It’s a grown-ass relationship.�