Will you be my Galentine'?

Valentine’s Day is being observed by many as a day to express their love to family members and friends, rather than romantic partners. Inspired by this thought, several socialites from the city are leaving behind their husbands to celebrate the day of love with friends they adore.

Manisha Kapoor, who is currently holidaying in Goa with her friends, says, “My close friends and I wanted to spend this Valentine’s Day together and show each other how much we care for each other. We also took this as an excuse to take a short holiday and pamper ourselves. In fact, we would suggest people to focus on their girlfriends this Valentine’s Day with a ‘Galentine’s Day’ celebration. We have been planning this since two months. Although there is a Friendship Day, but it’s seldom acknowledged beyond a Facebook post. Also, the value and longevity of good friendships can often outweigh that of many romantic relationships. So why not celebrate your bond with your BFFs on Valentine’s Day as well?”

At the same time, Suchita Ahuja says that the husbands have been very supportive. “My husband Sunny is very loving and says, ‘With you, everyday is Valentine’s Day.’ So I didn’t feel the need to spend this specific day with him,” she shares, while Suvidha Gupta, too, adds that her husband was very supportive and all he wanted was for her to have fun on this day.

Adds Manisha, “Our husbands were quite supportive but also teased us by saying that they too would celebrate the day with their guy friends.”

Sakshi Chugani agrees with Suchita and says, “To celebrate love you do not need a particular day. We celebrate our love for each other every day, so we didn’t see it necessary to celebrate the day with our partners.”

For Sakshi, it was in fact her husband who pushed her to join in her friends for a holiday. “My husband was very supportive about it. He was the one who pushed me to join in. And his reaction was the same as mine — that one particular day cannot justify the bond we share.”

Ruchita Kumar, a single mother, flew down from Dubai to celebrate what they call a ‘Galentine’s Day’ and join in her friends on the trip. “I am a proud single mother. I wanted to spend this day with my family and friends. So this year, I decided to fly down from Dubai to spend it with my best friends. It’s ‘Galentine’s Day’ for all of us here in Goa.”