| Submit your comments on this article |
| The Alliance |
| Hindu fundamentalists in Mumbai don't like St. Valentine |
| 2002-02-13 |
The Shiv Sena, the radical Hindu political party that is a powerful force in Mumbai, sees in Cupid the very avatar of Western culture, a symbol of its corrupting influence over traditional Indian society. Last year, supporters of Shiv Sena stormed shops that carried Valentine's Day greeting cards, overturned display racks and made bonfires on the streets. This year, Sena leaders issued another death warrant of sorts against Valentine's Day, calling it a frivolous occasion that sullies Indian values and gives young people another excuse to spend their parents' money. Pramod Navalkar, a Shiv Sena man and the former culture minister of the state of Maharashtra declared: "Drinking, dancing. Drinking, dancing. These two D's are destroying us." Taliban of the Hindu right, guardians of Indian values, or killjoys of the Bombay spirit? Public opinion on the Shiv Sena here is by no means uniform. What is certain is that their crusade against Cupid is merely the latest sign of a creeping puritanism that aims to make this India metropolis less freewheeling. Ummm... Yes. Valentine's Day is frivolous - it's supposed to be. If you don't like it, then make faces at your wife/girlfriend or call her names or something. Or change Cupid's name to something indigenous. Contrary to the opinions of Hindu fundamentalists, India has a proud history of frivolty and mirth second to none, much of it involving boys and girls doing frivolous and mirthful things together. We're talkin' nekkid dancing girls, Kama Sutra country, and some temple statuary that John Ashcroft's staff would have draped in jig time. Here's hoping that the population of Bombay is stocking up on rotted fruit so they can have some serious discussions with these yokels. If you want to be a real fundamentalist in India, don't you have to perform the horse sacrifice and guzzle soma? If not the horse sacrifice, at least the Tijuana donkey show, it's modern cousin. Always hated Valentines Day but they are being a tad extreme. Just ignore and give your wife/gf flowers the day before or after. Why should chocolates and flowers be a once a year thing? I send them whenever I feel like it, not when some pin-head Hallmark decrees I should. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |