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Can I marry the person I love?

Durga Vahini poster
"Can I marry the person I love"? my daughter confronted me with the question.

 "Well," I fumbled.  What could I answer?  In the pre-Modi days I would have said something like, "Can I talk to him before I give an answer?  What kind of a person is he? Good enough to look after you?"  But in the Modi days I stand more confounded than Ann Frank's father was when Ann's nubile sister was asked to submit herself to the Nazis.

 "What well?" she demanded. This is the problem with today's generation.  They want immediate answers like instant coffee.  Or chai or instant conversions.

 I'm old.  I don't wear the bottoms of my trousers folded.  I don't dye my hair.  I don't shave my beard just like my Prime Minister.

 "Darling," I put on the best tone I could muster.  Not master, of course.  Only Mr Modi is the master now.

 "You have to get the permission from Durga Vahini, not me," I said candidly avoiding the ums and errs.

"What's Durga Yoni?" she asked.

 "Gosh!" I said to myself.  "Don't you watch the TV?  The Durga Yoni, I mean Durga Vahini, has asked Kareena Kapoor to divorce her husband and return home.  Ghar Vapsi, they call it."

 "What the f**k does that mean?"

 "I don't know, dear," I opened my palms helplessly.  We now live in a country ruled by an emperor whose organs decide who will love whom and marry whom.

 She spat out and walked away.

 What am I to do? Old man with shrivelling veins?  I want to help my daughter.  But I want to be a patriot too.


PS. I have no children.  Given the situation in India, I'm glad.
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Comments

  1. Amrita SabatJanuary 8, 2015 at 7:07 PM

    OMG! Mindblowing post Sir!

    But I have a qn- has Kareena Kapoor converted to Muslim or has she just assumed the title 'Khan'?! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalJanuary 8, 2015 at 7:13 PM

      She has not converted, Amrita. There is no conversion in the high class circles. All conversion takes place in low classes. That's why I posted this. I'm curious how the PM will handle this. He is unleashing the monsters beyond his control. I pity him.

      Delete
  2. Saru SinghalJanuary 8, 2015 at 7:25 PM

    I can summarise the state of our country in one word - pathetic.

    ReplyDelete
  3. NajmunJanuary 8, 2015 at 8:19 PM

    This is the worst case scenerio! What could be worse than this, I can't wait for Modi days to be over now :/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalJanuary 8, 2015 at 8:45 PM

      In a way, it's good. They are targetting somebody important and not just the Dalits who can be bought for a few dollars donated to the BJP from Indian Americans.

      Delete
  4. Vinay NagarajuJanuary 8, 2015 at 8:22 PM

    Funny thing, I wrote a post on the same topic today :) .

    Well to be honest, I really do not know what Modi's true perspective towards this is. I do agree that there are traces of strong association in the past and if they are present in the present too, they are well hidden ;).. Either ways, I can unequivocally say that it is extremely wrong to drive religion into personal choice, it kinda defeats the whole purpose of religion..

    ReplyDelete
  5. ManiparnaJanuary 9, 2015 at 1:18 AM

    Things are getting worse...religion is individual choice, so is marriage. State has no right to interfere in such matters...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalJanuary 9, 2015 at 9:44 AM

      Let's hope that the activists will understand it. Perhaps this is not so much about understanding as about wielding power.

      Delete
  6. KalpanaJanuary 9, 2015 at 8:23 AM

    Well said! This whole thing is ridiculous - wrong on so many levels. Overzealous idiots interfering in people's personal lives with no idea of nuances. Such uneducated and blinkered thinking is disturbing.

    ReplyDelete
  7. IndraniJanuary 9, 2015 at 10:07 AM

    Ridiculous!
    I like the humorous way you have put it across.

    ReplyDelete
  8. UnknownJanuary 9, 2015 at 5:23 PM

    If govt would have been optimistic they could ve used 3 khans as ambassadors for promoting secularism and make india a unique place in world. As shah rukh. Aamir. Saif all married without caring of religion

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalJanuary 9, 2015 at 6:22 PM

      True, inter-religious marriages should be encouraged by the govt and other agencies so that communal harmony strengthens in the country.

      Delete
  9. UnknownJanuary 14, 2015 at 11:21 PM

    This is shameful. Rather, it is ridiculous. Are Indians walking back in time?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Aayesha S HakimJanuary 18, 2015 at 1:23 PM

    Pathetic state. Nice post, sir :)

    ReplyDelete

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