Marriage – A Necessary Evil??

Let me challenge the status quo and come up with a post on how “blissful” this institution of marriage can be…

The humour angle –

In the last twelve years (I think we got married on April 28, 1999!) I have learnt that one needs two things to succeed in marriage: Sense of humor and a very, very short memory (Not like Aamir Khan in Ghajini, of course!).

If you are a married male, you probably know that there are only two reasons for your wife to fight with you – you and your family members. If you are a married lady…you don`t need to be told the two reasons why your husband fights with you – his wife and her family.

While my better half and I are still figuring out how we can start loving each other…we have found a solution to love each other`s family members. For example, she loves my mother-in-law…and I adore her mother-in-law. Now, that`s a beginning. What say?

Marriage is a necessary evil.

Necessity because

a)      It gives you food, clean clothes and comfort (all this if you are a man)

b)      It gives you money to shop, a fool to listen to your blabber and handle an emotionally warped guy(all this if you are a woman)

Evil because

a)      You  become a domestic animal(if you are a man)

b)      You become a domestic servant to your husband(if you are a woman)

The serious angle –

Now, if you discount my humor in the above paragraph, then I firmly believe that Marriage is  nothing but a partnership between two human beings to meet the challenges of life.

Our examples are not far way as they lie in our respective parents.

Their bondage  got stronger with every passing year,They have seen all the hardships and supported each other in the toughest of times.This is possible only if there is a strong companionship and a spirit of "Oneness" which ofcourse is an important bye-product of marriage.

Marriage lends stability,responsibility and a purpose to our lives.We then start thinking of “WE” and not “I/Me”.

So,in my view, guys , Marriage is  necessary for all the angels and an evil for all the devils!!!

Indians - Another view

We're Indians. We don't kiss in public domain. Kissing is what people outside India do. We just smile shyly at the people we love (many of us are shy even to hold our spouse’s hand while walking – I am discounting the current GenX). Watch our many movies for proof.

We love cricket. It's because we're so good at it. It's because we feel we have in it us to beat the world. Kapil and his devils gave us that belief first. Dhoni and his team cemented that belief. Other sports are not worthy of our attention. Other sportsmen do not pour their hearts out into their games. Other sportsmen are not worthy of endorsing our brands of footwear, aerated drinks or car batteries. Our cricketers alone deserve our adoration. Because they just play cricket and don’t while away their time partying in the nights.

Our cricketers and our movie stars, that is. Our movie stars are intelligent. They study all scripts carefully and are always unwilling to go for stereotypes. Our movie stars go for the scripts that stretch the envelope and give a social message that helps the cause of our country.

We are a patient, tolerant people. We accept all religions and tolerate all kinds of behaviours. We never riot. Politicians in India are a responsible lot. They don’t manipulate issues,poor people or misuse public money.Rioting, too, happens only outside our borders. We keep the peace at all hours. We tolerate all religions and dont provoke sentiments.

All Indians are our brothers and sisters. This is why we respect all women. This is why women in our major cities can do as they like and travel, unaccompanied, at all hours. This is why our policemen are highly respected, for the protection they offer to all women. We like women to have minds of their own. We do not brand them as objects of lust. Look at our many female film stars for proof. We respect them all. The ones who choose to do as they like on screen, as well as the ones who do not.

Bold women are never a threat to us. The idea of female sexuality is welcomed and holds no threat for our calm countrymen. We do not ask women to wear clothes we choose for them. We respect them irrespective of whether they're dressed in nine-yard saris or nine-inch mini-skirts.

Education is important for us. We respect our teachers. We encourage our sons and daughters to take up teaching as a profession. We pay our teachers well. We pay our teachers on time. We teach our sons that teaching is not just a JOB.It is a noble profession. We respect our system of education. We encourage our sons and daughters to get an education here, not abroad, because we believe in the system. The few who graduate abroad are encouraged to come back here, to make life even better than it already is for themselves and their countrymen.

The other noble profession is of a Doctor.In India, every doctor sees the treatment of poor and underprivileged ,in villages as his responsibility .They don’t cheat on the patients by giving loads of prescription just to please the pharma companies.They don’t see this as an opportunity to make money out of unsuspecting patients.The doctors are honest and give the correct diagnosis and treatment.

We are proud of our culture. We uphold it every week. Our heritage is precious. This is why we protect it well. Our monuments are well cared for. Our museums are well funded. Our curators are literate and well paid. We do not allow people to encroach on sites like the Taj Mahal or the Qutub Minar. We don’t allow any kind of scribbling on the walls of these monuments..

We treat our sons and daughters equally. We allow our daughters to marry when they wish to. We allow our daughters to pick the men they want to spend  their lives with. We encourage our daughters to think for themselves. We believe they have the intelligence to make wise decisions. This is also why we encourage them to study further.

We love our country. We don't want to live anywhere else. We don't work towards the idea of leaving it and never coming back.

Because we're Indians. Hypocrites, all(that includes ME,ouch!!)