Buy me a valentine | Feature

ANURAG ACHARYA

Valentine's Day is here and the stacks of red roses and heart shaped scarlet balloons are all too obvious to ignore. Even the stone hurling brigades protesting the petroleum price-hike have disappeared from the streets, probably filling their own tanks in the meantime. Now, if you are a party planning a street protest or Nepal banda, you know when not to do it.

To be honest, there is nothing wrong with celebrating your love but Valentine 's Day is no longer just about celebrating your love, it's about doing it in style. On any other day, couples would be just as comfortable sitting on the stairs of Swayambhu or spending the day behind the green covers provided by the foliage of Sankhapark. But if friends ask you about your V day plans, anything less than wining and dining becomes a turn off.

Expensive gifts, stupidly large cards with cheesy love notes, swanky candle light dinners and movie tickets are just the usual. Couples battle it out to prove to those around that they are the most romantic of the lot. That's when love takes a backseat and the market takes over.

A quarter of humanity, the ones who still manage to salvage a dime here and there out of their daily provisions, celebrates their love on February 14, thanks to the successful cultural bombing by the west. It's a lucrative market and the merchants of love feast on the overflowing romance. Candies to Cadillac's, everything is in the offing. Even school kids with no earnings are seen flocking Archie's stores and supermarkets looking for the perfect gift to impress the ones that rock their world, while parents have nightmares adjusting their monthly budget because grey notes go missing from their wallets.

Absolutely no issues there, everybody likes being pampered once in a while. The problem is the business of love becomes too sweet to handle at times. In the heat of their love, couples dole out more than they can afford, while those unable to do so are guilty and embarrassed at all the glitz and glamour. You may find a cozy corner table for yourselves but even the waiter will not get your drink on time if you haven't ordered the most exotic item or the special Valentine's Day cake on the menu. So, don't be mad if your hubby or honey decides to play a spoilsport on the day, calling to tell you he is down with flu. Poor guy must be broke.

You can endlessly argue that nothing is forced onto you and the almighty market has a pie to share with everyone, you just have to choose what suits your appetite. But it's your special one we are talking about, isn't it, and of course they deserve the best?

Valentine's Day does not have to be a drama for those who can afford to stage one, nor should it become a trauma for those who cannot. Your beloved deserves the best of what you have to offer, not what's up there for sale. Go and enjoy it like any other day. There is nothing more special about the day than the person beside you. Roses and cakes are sweet but they don't have to put a price tag on your feelings.
Disclaimer: The writer does not claim the moral high ground and has been found guilty of indulging his loved ones.