Should it be a card or a WhatsApp message?

Tug of war

In the past, February 14 has been synonymous with bouquets, chocolates, cards and mushy love notes on fragrant pink paper to woo the significant other. Now, however, the tide seems to have turned.

With the arrival of a swarm of social media and instant messaging applications on smartphones, people are not as dependent on traditional means of correspondence as much as they would have been a few years ago.

While cards and letters bring a fulfilling feeling along with them, they also stand as ‘incriminating evidence’ in the eyes of scrutinising parents.

“Teddy bears and chocolates can still be passed off as gifts from friends, but a signed card or letter does not get off the hook that easily. When my husband (then boyfriend) used to send letters and even illustrations in notebook pages, I would hide them from my parents as a thief would his loot from the authorities.

I doubt kids these days have to face anything like that. They probably just erase their chat history and get in the clear” says Smita, an illustrator with a city advertising agency.
It is true that more and more people, mostly youngsters, these days rarely even type.

They use expressive emoticons or emojees and e-cards. We have already seen the decline in the use of conventional birthday cards with the advent of Facebook to remind us to instantly wish someone on their birthday. This slowly seems to be catching up with the phenomenon of Valentine’s Day too with the option to send an electronic greeting at the touch of a button.

The store manager for the Archies outlet in Lajpat Nagar, Pankaj Kumar said “We have a satisfactory sale in and around Valentine’s Day but I cannot give you an exact figure as that information is confidential. However, I have a feeling that the numbers may have
been more in the era before the smartphone”.

Be it a virtual wish or one that you can hold, just make sure it is a heartwarming one this Valentine’s Day.