Saint Valentine’s Day is celebrated every year on 14th of February (you can look up the details on wiki, they will be way more factual than I can ever dream of being). Well the concept is European, but it’s a small world, and a young India also enthusiastically celebrates the occasion. Gifts, chocolates and cards are exchanged, couples confess their affection for one another again and again, red roses and hearts decorate every restaurant, café (well, every place a couple may visit), parks are jam packed, each obscure corner occupied by a couple. And all this is interrupted by a small group of people bent upon destroying the ambience and peace-of-mind of lovers. Well if it was just burning of Valentine’s Day cards and a little shouting, it would have been tolerable (you could just run away and spend your special day somewhere quiet) but these guys have taken things a step too far. Shiv Sena, RSS etc. take their actions to a completely different level. What they do is rob us of our choice of expression. They do all this on the pretext of conserving Indian tradition. According to them, celebration of valentine’s day tarnishes our glorious culture. Imagine you’re at a café with your girlfriend having the cuddly clichéd talk, when a bunch of angry youngsters surround you, drag you to a mandap and marry both of you. Preposterous, isn’t it? Well along with this you have the regular; beat the guy up, insult the girl and accuse them of destroying Indian culture… blah blah blah. All this in a country that advocates tolerance and understanding.
A big word of advice to you extremists; it’s the 21st century for god’s sake; people are free to do as they please within the boundaries of decency. Love and dating are as much a part of Indian culture as is marriage. Though the scene has become much more liberal that it used to be, isn’t that the whole point of a progressive society? What happens on Valentine’s Day is in no way immoral or indecent. My advice: get a girlfriend, you seriously need to chill out, and also read up on some history if you can… there is something fundamentally wrong with your education.
Vakul Mohanty
A metal-head who's wants to do pursue a Ph.D Currently studying Biology & Comp Sc. at BITS,Pilani - Hyderabad Campus, his life-long ambition is to become a professor and wear shorts to work
A metal-head who's wants to do pursue a Ph.D Currently studying Biology & Comp Sc. at BITS,Pilani - Hyderabad Campus, his life-long ambition is to become a professor and wear shorts to work
