Thursday, February 5, 2009

Public Display of Affection

It is not about superstar Richard Gerre and superfamous Big Boss girl Shilpa Shetty.
We complained against saffron group when they objected over the kissing incidence between the two famous personalities. May be it was a way to gather attention.
What if a common man and his wife are taken in police custody by the government police just because they were kissing alongside a railway station?
That is how the world's largest democracy works. You need to look before expressing your most honest and legitimate emotions. Police may call it obscene you know, police decides what is moral and what Indian culture is.
The good thing is Court dismissed any sort of criminal proceeding against the couple, yes the married couple. At least Indian court allows a man to kiss his wife, yet Police may beat a man's ass for doing so.
Yet, courts are also not so flexible, an Israeli couple was fined $22 for kissing after getting married in a Hindu ceremony in Rajasthan. Can you believe this? A newly married husband cannot kiss the wife in India, because it is India.
We can conveniently pee near bushes and other public places kisses by even married couples is not allowed.
Is it the problem of those saffron brands or is this the problem of well-educated next generation youth of India, the same youngistan?
In 2004, when some college students of Bangalore were interviewed, most of the male students expressed their opposition to Public Displays of Affection (PDA) while most of the girls were in favour of it. Yes, Indian girls are more open minded about the issue.
It is not only about kissing; people do not support public hugging between girls and boys too. Ahh boys cannot give "Jaddu ki Jhappi" to girls, sorry Munnabhai!
When Ram Sena attacked public pubs in Mangalore, all blamed the saffron group, yet in comments to Times of India Editor desk in 2007, most of young educated Indians with no connection of saffron group were opposing the idea of pub, smooching, kissing hugging in public places.
Is that why the kissing dragon Emran Hashmi being praised by some Indians? He may bring some "revolution" in India regarding Public Display of Affection.
The question is, is kissing really alien to Indians?
Historical facts suggest that Indians discovered the art of smooching and kissing.
Four Vedic Sanskrit texts, written in India around 1500 B.C., appear to describe people kissing.
In Mahabharat, kissing on lips is described as sign of affection, Vatsyayana Kamasutram, (Kamasutra) also describes variety of kisses. I am sure most of the Indians do not realize it now. Yet, the problem is not about kissing, it is about Public Display of Affection.
It is none of other's business what people do in their private life, but everybody started getting the pinch of salt if it is a public display of affection. Obviously it describes the importance of private property again.
For most of the people, watching Public Display of Affection becomes either amusing or embarrassing because Indian's are still not used to it. If a girl goes with a boy, taking his hand in hers on roads, everybody will stare.
Not all think it is wrong, immoral, or even disturbing. Watching couples, including newly-weds holding their hands or putting their arms around each other makes one feel happy, happy about the happiness and satisfaction of life, about the idea that all is going well. Even elder Indians does not think it is very forward or awkward when a recently wed-couple hold hands and walk in public places, one may see many old couples too walking in public gardens holding their hands together gossiping about their old days, ohh yea the dearly oldie love stories of their passed young life. Yet, if some young couple do the same in front of those old couple in public, they may feel embarrassed, disturbed, or disrespected?
In Indian colleges, girls and boys may suffer harsh punishment including suspensions if they are found roaming around with each other with necking or kissing each other.
Not all colleges are like that; Jaipur MNIT was not like that. I know it was full of full of Romeos and Juliets, some of them are married couples now. That's how life goes, guys and girls attracts, kisses, have sex, marries and make a good beautiful happy satisfied couple.
Anyways, let us think for a while, what makes kissing or smooching in public place a crime? Why should police need to arrest the couples kissing in public place? The same police which is just ineffective in every other department, why does it start showing its efficiencies in harassing honest innocent citizens.
Kissing in public is not at all an offence, not even of the type of victimless offence.
Yet all cultures, not all countries provide similar liberties to the individuals.
Now here is the hypocrisy, the same Indians who usually enjoy the boldness of the opportunity to diplay their affection publicly when they go outside India, may not support idea of PDA in India.
India is a country which provides liberty to pee here and there and spit gutkhas out there on roads, bus stands and railway stations. Yet one cannot display any sort of affection to the one he loves on the same railway station.
One can guess why the rigid irrational common legal ideas about date rapes can become extreme tyranny in India.

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