Happy Valentine's Day!

It's the 14th of February today and it's time to celebrate love and express your affection for that special someone in your life; unless, of course, you are single and alone or a Shiv Sena activist! Yes, the 'Sainiks' were out this year again, burning cards and protesting the holiday.

Though celebrating Valentine's Day is a very recent phenomenon in India, unlike many other western imports (fast food joints, big box retailers etc.), it's a much welcome import. A land that gave us the Kama Sutra and that quintessential expression of love - Taj Mahal - had somewhere down the line lost its tradition of love. Any overt expression of love became frowned upon. And, I am not even talking about love before marriage; I am talking about married couples having to repress expressing their love for each other! Except for honeymoon couples in holiday spots, how many couples hold each other's hands in public? How many parents hug or otherwise be romantic at home in front of their kids?

Looking beyond the commercial aspects of the holiday, the underlying spirit of expressing love is definitely worth celebrating (and much needed) in India. In fact, more than youngsters, it provides an opportunity for the older generation to finally express their affection for each other a little bit more openly. If my grandmother buys my grandfather a Valentine's card, would the 'Sainiks' rip it out of her hands and burn it? I think not!

What Not to Wear

When I first heard that the appropriateness of actress Shreya's attire at a recent function in Chennai was discussed with fervor in Tamil Nadu , I wondered if that show on TV where two oddly dressed gay guys and a hot girl discuss celebrity fashion (Fashion Police on E!), has now gone global to Kollywood as well. But, apparently it was the state's politicians who were discussing the subject and that too in the state assembly!

To be honest, she was the only one who was appropriately dressed for the occasion. I mean, it's a movie function after all and it's supposed to be about glitz and glamour. Amidst all those somber looking guests, she was the only one who was even smiling!

On a serious note, while the new generation of young Indians are leading the nation to a brave new world, incidents like these expose the narrow-minded social chauvinism that is still prevalent.  What's more bothering is the fact that no major social organization came in support of the actress. Whatever happened to editorials and opinion columns in newspapers? Where are those feminists and women's organizations? Shouldn't the movie fraternity have come out in support of her? The only voice of protest has been from individuals in blogs and online forums. Why is that people who burn effigies of umpires for giving a wrong decision against their favorite cricket player, keep quiet when the very concept of democracy is threatened? Some might think that I am overreacting; after all nothing came off the issue, but, if we don't question such attitude, we will never end it.

Similar to the IT revolution that has changed the economic outlook of the country; we need a social revolution to bring in the next generation of politicians to better represent the new India.