Random Expressions

So Venus kissed the sun in full heat and passion, leaving the blazing star with a haseen daag, which all viewed with sheer awe and delight. The newspapers and the news channels went amok explaining the phenomenon, both scientifically and astrologically.

Venus (and her Greek counterpart Aphrodite) has always been associated with love and beauty. Her depictions in paintings have been of a nubile nymphet with a playful smile. In fact, this has been the attitude and outlook of most Westerners when it comes to love- a passion of the heart, to be enjoyed, cheered and honored. Love, in their literature and films, has been always been full of feel-good humor and froth.

Alongwith the lustful date of Venus with the Sun, there was another news that captured the newsprints: the marriage of pop icon Jennifer Lopez with Marc Anthony. It was the formers third and the latter’s second one, and that too barely two weeks after the divorce of the first one. So, do we deduce that the Westerners (read Americans, as they are the most visible ones in this part of the world) less committed to their relationships. Or do we understand, that they are more knowledgeable in enjoying their lives at the fullest. Even if we do consider that Ms. Lo is a celebrity, and hence, by that warped logic, less given to morality, can we, translated to the Indian context, expect an Aishwarya Rai or even the more bohemian Pooja Bhatt to jump from one marriage to another in quick succession? Certainly not, for that means they shall immediately loose a considerable amount of fan-base. So even though they may have strings of affairs, they choose to hide behind the oft-repeated moral petticoats of “good-friends” excuse.

This is because, we, as a society and as a culture, are very serious, and have perhaps forgotten to laugh down the ages- be it in the business of love or any other field. Come on, just look at the available photographs of all the Prime Ministers (and as extension their Ministers) down the ages- all of them come with a stiff upper lip (barring perhaps an odd exception of the poet-statesman Mr. Vajpayee). Worse, just take a look at the current lot in the government -be it Mr. Manmohan Singh or Mr. Natwar Singh or Mr. S.Patil, all of them have such grouchy demeanor, it almost seems as if they will soon pass a bill banning smiles!!!

This serious outlook of life ensures that our daily dose of news always has a whopping of love killings in some obscure district of Bihar or Uttar Pradesh. We just cannot take love as an enjoyable, pleasurable activity formed to make the heart tender and joyous. Since Bollywood is one of the finest social barometers, all our love stories are high-strung emotional melodramas- and the trend continues. The most popular channel of television is full of soppy tearjerkers and sagas of families constantly in throes of woes and rows. A daringly different Sab TV forms the silt of the TRP gallon.

It is true that as a nation we have suffered a lot- there have been innumerable wars, almost a century long bondage, and a trauma of Partition, that is definitely not easy to wipe out. But come on, times have changed, that was the past. As all shrinks advise any such emotionally bereaved person, we need to address this to the nation also: that was the past, and is over with. We now have to move on, and remove the yokes of awful memories, and enjoy life. Happiness is not a crime. A happy nation is a healthy nation. And only then it can move forward and flourish.

As a corollary, love should be also taken as an adrenaline pumping emotion that should evoke smiles not sullenness. Here lies the importance of the recent transit of Venus. We should realize this finally that in Western interpretation Venus, and her son Cupid, are playful, mischievous and frolickers. Even our own love god, Kamadeva, is quite like that, but unfortunately, Kamadeva has been reduced to represent sex only, and hence, to be wrapped up tightly beneath the bed sheets behind very tightly closed iron doors. Let us take a cue from such representations and free our minds from all shackles of hypocrisy and seriousness. Lovers of the world unite, for we have nothing to loose but old societal norms.

Love is not a rog ( illness) but a happy-go-lucky rogue ( who visits everyone once in a lifetime, and gives happiness till he stays) , and let us keep it that way.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, June 10th, 2004 at 2:43 pm and is filed under Humor. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.