Friday 29 October 2010

Happy KC

Watching my friends dressed in Indian finery and observing the age old tradition of Karva Chauth made me wonder about traditions.

What makes us follow traditions? Why do most North Indian women of my generation including the well heeled, well travelled and well read, fast from sunrise to moonrise without a drop of water for the well being of their other half? Why then did some of the other similar festivals that celebrate "suhaag" not become as popular as the KC?

Perhaps Charles Darwin has had it right all the way through...perhaps just like our bodies, our culture and traditions need to continuously change and stay relevant through the times.

What drives this change? The role of pop culture in driving this change cannot be denied.  Thanks to HAHK and DDLJ, Karva Chauth is the new Valentine's Day (without the unnecessary hulla-gulla and the ram sena and the pink chaddis...). In a country where the "partner" concept is still in nascent stages, NDTV's headline news about how Bebo kept a fast for Saif is part interesting as well disturbing...But then pop culture and commercialisation have always been intertwined, feeding off each other; creating a viscious cycle...

For now, it looks like KC has gone from kitsch to uber cool; Time for the humble "Teej" to do the evolution...

3 comments:

  1. Well, after some deliberation and some guilt, I gave a miss to fasting at KarvaChauth this year.
    Yes, KC has gained a new found status, thanks to Bollywood movies. Also fits in well with the festival times.

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  2. Hey Di..
    Actually, I guess the "cool" outient of karva really isnt happening here. So many of my firends gave it a miss.. not coz they love their partners any less.. but it is simply impractical to be fasting without water and doing FMCG sales at the same time !

    Shipra

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  3. interesting comments, yes it is a bit impractical in today's lives which is what surprised me that Bollywood or media has begun to talk about it so much and try and give it a cool spin..

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