Romance has always been the focal point of fiction, be it prose, poetry or films…. we human literally thrive on love…In fact in current Indian Publishing scene, every second novel is based on romance..I am not against the genre..rather it is one of the most versatile aspect of human life and being one of the most basic instincts has been getting explored till time immemorial… Be it the Cave Art or our epic books…romance has always been on center stage…but what I find offensive is the degradation in quality….every other book repeats the same old formula of a girl and boy falling in love, sharing a few sweet moments together, giving ample space for physical liaisons and then without touching any heights of romanticism, just crash land into Hindi Movie formula..

Quite boring, isn’t it… The issues related to compatibility as well as the relative growth of both the partners, are seldom stressed upon… Truth be told, love is the most powerful emotion that can wreck or brighten up personalities of both the partners… in fact, both the man and woman, are perfect mirror images, they can see their own traits reflected in the other… and that’s why probably fall in love and then also grow out of love.. yes, your shortcomings are magnified and your good traits also shine more than ever, when you are in a relationship.. whether both of them can keep their emotions in sync is a predominant factor in deciding how long they would remain in love… but our movies and novels end much before that reality hits in.. we are left in the high heavens, without being exposed to the muck hidden beneath.. who likes bickering stories anyway.. they are limited to old married folks, not love lorn couples….

But, I would love to see few daring authors shake up the reality of romance, stressing on the not-so-pleasant emotionally charged and mentally stimulating real life romantic stories, where everything is not just sugary but has a tangy chilli flavor as well
Anupama