Boy, will you be my Valentine?

Just how comfortable are women when it comes to popping the question? And when a man gets proposed, does the reaction go beyond the 'whoa' stage?
Traditionally, February 29 is the only day in the calendar when a lady may propose to a guy. All other days and every year, it remains the man's prerogative. Even as women challenge men in all spheres, when it comes to the age-old ritual of popping the question, it has long remained the man's domain.
Yet, there are women who're turning the table and taking their beaus by surprise. Delhi Times explores genders' last bastion...
Shy guys: Believe it or not, men are quite content to let women be in the driver's seat. VJ Cyrus says, "I'm pretty uncomfortable asking a woman out. I get so nervous, I almost get seizures," he adds in mock-seriousness.
Actor Zulfi Sayeed would also rather let women do the proposing, "I'm a quite a shy guy. Women are so much better at expressing themselves. I would love to be wooed by a woman."
Some like it old fashioned: So, if guys are too shy, are women game enough? Surprisingly, the woman of today still hesitates, when it comes to the crunch. Says actor Perizad Zorabian, "I may appear to be modern and liberated, but when it comes to popping the question, I'm far too conservative.
I want to be swept off my feet, I want the man to go down on his knees... the works." Actress Diana Hayden also belongs to the old school of thought, "I'm a die-hard romantic. It's not that I fear rejection, it's just that I want to be wooed by a man."
We're game: With men trying to overcome their shyness and women trying to turn on the coyness, it leaves the question blowing in the wind. Who will pop the question? "I have had women proposing to men by letters, mail and SMS, but never directly.
As long as I know the woman, I would love to be proposed by her," says Sayeed. While singer Sophie Chaudhary says, "I've never really proposed to a man, but I have imagined it often enough. It would be a romantic setting."
Adds singer Amaan Ali, "In school, I was always being asked out by girls, who were in junior batches. They proposed with flowers and cards and poems, It was such a nice feeling."