Page 43 - Seniorstoday September-2023 Issue
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a rage with a wide following not just in messages of positivity and stories of
Lucknow, but across India. Alok and Alia amity to the masses and hope that these
managed to run it as a non-profit social cascade and seep deep across India. They
enterprise, with their modest corporate created a hashtag #PyaarMohabbat to post
salaries, but were soon supported their messages and stories. These started
financially by voluntary donations from eliciting massive responses and spread
the thankful youths who benefitted from like wildfire. It got the attention of the
their sagacious and empathetic counselling. political and the police class who started
They had a huge fan following on Facebook, taking preventive steps in sensitive areas
Instagram and LinkedIn and were seen as to mitigate and prevent such instances.
influencers by the Gen Z and Gen Alpha Thousands of NGOs soon got into the act
besides the political class and corporate and several of them partnered GyanPyaar
biggies. in rural areas in counselling and supporting
families of young couples in cross-religion
relationships. It was an endless struggle
needing tenacity of purpose and tap of
resources to maintain the social pressure.
But Alok and Alia were determined to be at
it and were willing to do anything to make
people sit up and take notice to get rid of
the malice. There were many misguided
youth and bigots out there in the world and
it was getting to be a struggle. What can
Brought up in an atmosphere of love and individuals do when the state has failed
respect by their families, Alok and Alia to stop the atrocities. Tired and enervated,
were extraordinarily disturbed by the Alok and Alia called it a day that Thursday.
random instances of skirmishes between Friday would be a new day with new ideas,
religious zealots and groups, not just in the eternally hopeful souls that they were.
Lucknow and sundry odd places in UP, but
also in other states. What they found more
horrific was the public lynching of cross-
religion young lovers, ex-communication
by gram panchayats, familicides and
honour killings. These were overwhelming
and beyond their young but mature minds.
Have people forgotten the gory past leading
to the tryst with destiny, they wondered.
They had to do something to stop this Alok and Alia had a habit of visiting a
madness. But they were not sure how, temple and a mosque together every Friday
specks that they were in the 1.4 billion morning, a day considered as auspicious
Indian populace. both by the Hindus and Muslims. But they
The only thing they could do was to both skipped the ritual the next day and
use their popular portal to disseminate went out on their own citing some reasons.
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #51 | SEPTEMBER 2023 43
