October 31, 2007...11:42 am
Karva Chauth Trends
Karwa Chawth is an annual fast observed by married Hindu women in North India for the long life and well-being of their husbands. The women break their fast only after the moon is sighted/worshipped. The husbands feed the first morsel of food to their wives. Men and children excitedly run in and out of the house racing to announce the first sighting of the moon. Thanks to the Hindi Film industry it is becoming popular all over India and among the Non Resident Indians all over the world. Unmarried girls fast on this day for the well-being of their prospective husbands. Thanks to Shahrukh Khan and Yashraj Films in ‘DDLJ’ (Hindi film) some men have also started fasting with their wives on this day. One of my friends has a strong objection to this, she says we women lose our importance and can’t effectively whine about our hunger anymore if the men carry their fasts with dignity. There is a man I know who didn’t want his wife to fast either, so he chose this day to take her out to her favourite restaurant and enjoyed his meal while she longingly watched him eat. My daughter calls that “suicidal tendencies”.
It’s not uncommon to see young girls fasting for their boyfriends or crushes nowadays. It amuses me no end when my daughters tell me about their classmates fasting for Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, George Clooney or whoever else is in fashion that year.
10 Comments
October 31, 2007 at 11:51 am
wow! lovely post…
October 31, 2007 at 12:13 pm
Thanks Bharath.
October 31, 2007 at 4:09 pm
heh interesting…. SRK eh?
by the way do you fast?
October 31, 2007 at 4:16 pm
lol @ fasting for DiCapio & Co
October 31, 2007 at 4:48 pm
Hahaha! This was about the kids fasting for movie stars…
So the first nugget of personal info comes out: you have girls.
October 31, 2007 at 7:51 pm
nice writeup
it could be scary not that slim is in and anorexia a part of their lives
fasting generally is good for Indians in this diabetes prone country
November 1, 2007 at 12:16 am
Karva Chauth is an amazing tradition that Indian women keep. In case you missed it, one of the best movies to show the true meaning of Karva Chauth is Dilwale Dhulaniya Le Jayenge: You can watch DDLJ online at Interval.in:
http://interval.in/videos.php?id=901
Relax, take a break at Interval.in - India’s premier movie portal
Enjoy!
November 1, 2007 at 8:13 am
I think fasting for one’s husband or wife is a very cool and loving idea but my only problem with Karva Chauth is that it converts romantic and natural love into superstition. People who would not give one moment’s thought to the moon all year round are suddenly anxious to see it and are scared their husbands will die if they eat without seeing it that night. Among the less orthodox (upper middle class people I guess?) people go outside, confirm that the moon is in fact visible, break their fast with a bite and eat the rest of their meal in front of the TV. As you have already mentioned, young girls (okay, my classmates) fast for celebrities (even those that already have wives fasting for them).
If I ever observe Karva Chauth for my husband I’d like to break my fast by having dinner with him in the moonlight, on a terrace or balcony or in a garden or by a lake or something. Preceded by prayer and followed by thanksgiving. Why should I worship the moon (one extreme) or ignore it once “my work is done” (in confirming that it is visible)(the other extreme)? The moon is what it is, a beautiful blessing from God which gives light and beauty to the night. But its creator is worthy of more praise.
November 1, 2007 at 11:08 am
@A you have taken all the romance out of Karwa Chawth and converted it into a philosophical debate. If girls are fasting for already married filmstars how does that harm the celebrities or their spouses. They won’t even know it. Moon is just a ritual. All of us know what a moon is. It is the substitute of Valentine day in India. The difference is that women have to whine and expect pampering because they are hungry.
Ammar, I didn’t fast for the initial few years. The sect I belong to doesn’t believe in it. There is so much fun attached to Karwa Chawth that I couldn’t help being a part of the rituals. In any case it makes your husband feel important so it is worth it.
Thanks Prax.
Yes rambodoc my secret is out :))
Rajiv, the worst part it the filmstars don’t even know that so many people are fasting and praying for them:))
November 5, 2007 at 6:15 am
there are lots of stories asociated about the origin of this fun-romantic festival..
Here women try to show the love for their husbands by fasting…wat betterway to show…
I have no problem with people following this rituals..only thing is that it shud not go the extent which sounds crazy…
like keeping it for married filmstars…or for anyone who doesn’t even knw that someone is doing this thing for his safety..But india is a country full of crazy ppl…we have pooja’s for indian cricket team..for film stars/temples…so even this thing is allowed…
It is funny, Nitin.There is nothing wrong in it as long as you are not forced to do it, or you are not harming anybody.
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