‘Yeh un dino ki baat hai…..’
Back in the day, dating and romance had a unique charm of its own. It was a time when lovers’ lives were dominated by numerous family restrictions and the not-so-cool society yet, the purity and warmth of their bond stood strong. Those dating trends were the ‘Original Gangsters’ in the sense that one could be charmed by their simplicity and genuineness. This article is intended to walk you through those dusty lanes of couples romanticising walks whilst holding their hands, sipping tea at a stall for a date, and many such simple yet heart-warming love goals and simultaneously providing a comparative perspective with modern dating.
Nowadays, putting forward your love is easy-breezy where couples get along and break up over a message. On the contrary, back then, wooing each other was not as easy as a pie. I can bet all of us, have at least once, been the spectators of movies demonstrating lovers going the extra mile to express their love. Showing up on their paths just to catch a glimpse of them, befriending their friends, or getting the hang of their preferences to conduct themselves in the same manner, the efforts spoke of their honesty. Conversations all-day long were not even a mere possibility owing to the non-digital setup. Yet, longing for each other while staying away was another kind of romance. Their family and social restrictions hindered them from frequent dates and meet-ups. They were sometimes unaware of their next meet-up yet, they stayed loyal to each other. Climbing to your lover’s balcony…ahh! Yes, it was real! Meeting each other away from the eyes of families just to get a moment had its thrill and joy. Their love language included dedicating songs to each other not through story mentions but by gifting cassette tapes of each other’s favourite recorded songs. Handwritten letters still have their aura, which can never be replaced by text messages.
Technology has connected the world through the internet and social media yet, separated us from a mental and soulful connection. The magic of traditional forms of love has been lost due to technology. However, we cannot deny the fact that technology has bore certain modern dating trends which complement the modern lifestyle and desires in productive ways. It is technology that has been able to sustain what we call, ‘long-distance relationships’. Technology acts as the saviour of lovers when they want to embrace their partners amidst their busy schedules. Therefore, it is completely justified to work out unconventional ways of retaining your love in the wind of dynamism.
This article’s not intended to degrade the modern form of love but to gather and sprinkle the essence of old-school love into ours. However, it is completely acceptable that certain people might not pick on old ways of expressing love. Therefore, I don’t intend to urge you to follow these dating trends, rather I intend to familiarise you with such beautiful forms of love that could be inculcated to sparkle your relationship. Lastly, as we say, ‘Old is Gold’, we can certainly attempt to preserve the old dating trends with the resins of modern means and efforts.