A 28-day honeymoon in South Korea. You read it right. The promise of snuggling in the Swiss alps or a yatch ride followed by a Croatian beach barbecue fades in comparison to walking the streets of Korea. Graphic designer Ektaa Rajani who got married earlier this month, is crazy about k-pop and k-drama so much so that she is slated to leave for a Korean honeymoon soon. She is currently watching Secretary Kim, “The best part about dramas is that they are mood elevators.
Every time I need a lift me up, I watch a K-drama. I think the reason for that is that Koreans have nailed it when it comes to understanding human emotions.
They have figured out a woman’s emotional needs. The men in Korean dramas do all the little things that can make a woman’s heart flutter! Aside from that, Koreans have an impeccable sense of design and fashion, if the drama revolves around a coffee shop, everything from the branding to interior design is tastefully done.” Ektaa has now lost count of how many shows she has seen. Some of them are Coffee with Prince, My Girlfriend is a Gumiho, Something in the Rain, Vampire Persecutor, Boys over Flower, etc.
It is no wonder then that media channels woke up to the demand, and have programmed k-drama and k-pop in their schedules. Over recent years, music apps also saw significant rise in downloads of Korean songs. For Anjul Gupta and her friends, it all began in college. “The shows have beautiful love stories and the boys are cute. We never grew out of it, never stopped watching it even after college,” she says.
Some of her favourite shows are Heirs, Oh my Venus, Seducing Mr. Perfect, 100 days with Mr. Arrogant and 200 pound beauty.
Korean bands now routinely top the worldwide music charts. While 20 and 30-somethings are binge watching the shows, teenagers are connecting to K-pop. Teenager Saanvi Sudeep, a music student and aficionado feels “Korean tunes are very catchy and every song is uniquely different. My older cousin introduced me to the music, and there has been no going back. It has a soothing effect on me. The sound of the language, specially makes it lovable.”
Some of her favourite songs that resonate are Okay by Strawberry Milk, It’s alright it’s love by Da vi Ci, Mic Drop by BTS, Blood, Sweat and Tears by BT, TT by Twice. Event curator Zohra Jamal partly credits the popularity of k-pop to the unique fashion sense of its artists. “They have cutting edge fashion sense and unique personalities. They are very particular about their looks and spotless skin.” Ektaa also adds “K-pop stars dedicate their lives to their profession. They are designed to be a hit from the get go! They are trained in different languages to cater to a wide audience. I find them jaw-dropping good. Another point is that these bands keep their fans engaged all the time.”
Samyukhta Manandi is a busy mom and entrepreneur who steals time from her routine to binge watch her favourite dramas, “Uncontrollably fond, I am not Robot, Inheritors, 12 year promise, etc. They are all made so well, good all round shows. Like us, they have lots of emotion, romance, and family drama. Pretty much like a very good Hindi movie,” she says.
Call it part similarity, part aspiration, K-pop is riding big and here to stay.
