Romance excels in extramarital love

ShahRukh Khan recently said in an interview relating to the film ‘Kabhi AlvidaNa Kahana’ or KANK that extramarital relationships happen in the societyitself. And that influences the films. Not that films influence the society, inturn it is the society, which influences films.
Infact many of our films both Hindiand regional ones revolves round extra-marital relationships as their theme.Toname a few are ‘Choker Bali’, ‘Silsila’, ‘Saheb,Bibi Ghulam’ and others. As for KANK, one question often comes to the mindwhether Karan Johar has done another ‘Silsila’? But that will bedecided only by movie experts and critics. But in the context of extra maritalrelationships we may ask, is such kind of relationship quite common in oursociety these days. Yes it is. But in comparatively older times also itprevailed.
Mahesh Bhatt'sMurder and Vikram Bhatt's ‘Ankahee’ talked about infidelity,‘Waisa Bhi Hota Hai’ and ‘Salaam Namaste’ put living incouples under the spotlight, and Rajat Kapoor's ‘Mixed Doubles’looked at changing gender equations.
Mahesh Bhatt, whose‘Arth’ is remembered for its sensitive portrayals of the other womanfactor in marriage, once stated “eyebrows were raised even when I produced‘Murder’. Extra marital relationships exist in our society and thereare thousands of housewives confined within the four walls of lovelessmarriages. So why this hypocrisy when movies talk about relationships?”
Even in TV soaps we find a lotof extra-marital relationship goes on and viewers are willing to empathise withthe characters when the story is strong. Says Sayantani Chowdhury, a Manipuridancer based in Kolkata, “We never mind viewing such things on TV. And wesupport it mentally, because such things happen in the society. In dance too, wefind themes based on extramarital relations.”
And so far novels and short storiesare concerned in Jhumpa Lahiri’s ‘Interpreter of Maladies’, ina short story ‘Sexy’ we find how a young Midwestern woman Miranda isdrawn into a tantalising affair with a married Bengali economist Devajit Mitra.It touches us. “It was cold but Sunny, and so she walked all the way downCommon wealth Avenue, past the restaurants when Dev has kissed her......”Not for a single moment that we thought anything bad about Miranda andDev.
In real life a few yearsago there was a circumstance when a Boeing executive whose romantic relationshipwith Boeing's chief executive led to his ouster who later has resignedvoluntarily.
Now men and womenare quite open to free mixing, particularly in workplaces. Office means anythingbetween 10-15 hours. On crunch days, timings can be crazier – with goinghome for may be just a change of clothes. So for married ones there is hardlyany time left to share with spouses. At first there develops a sense of athomeness and then closeness with bosses, colleagues - and one thing leads to theother.
Says Dr. Samir Parikh,psychiatrist, Max Healthcare, “No it doesn’t mean that if you arenot happy in a marriage, extramarital relationships will happen. Even if you arehappy in a marriage, such relations happen. When you are interacting withsomeone more often and at the same time, you are most comfortable with him andhave a feel good factor, such relationshappen.”
Therelationships which we are calling ‘extramarital’ happen to people,even unawares. It cannot be judged like something good or bad. It occurs. Beingforewarned is forearmed, and prevention is always better than cure. And theserelationships which much happen in our society are very often repeatedclichés but at the same time, also highly steeped in reality. One doesnot like potato chips everyday. But all that glitters may not begold.