Elections rule the city social scene too

With the entire city being in the grip of election mania with voting to be conducted today in the city, the social circuit can’t be far behind. Elections, the biggest jamboree of democracy, is finding its way in the social gatherings in the city. Recently at a musical night titled KL Saigal Se Kishore Kumar Tak, organised at Nagari Natak Mandali, where the audience savoured some delightful retro songs of Hindi films, the interval was used by the organisers to spread a message on voting. When the artist of the evening, Sangeeta Kutti Kulkarni, who kept the audience entertained with her singing, took a ten-minute break in her nearly two hours performance, the anchor made sure to put across the message to the audience of making use of their franchise. "Pehle vote phir aur koi kaam. Entertainment ke saath saath hamein apne daayitva (duties ) ka bhi dhyan rakhna chahiye, iss samay vote karna hamara sabse bada kartavya hai. Toh May 19 ko hamein zaroor vote dene jana hai," said Rajesh Shukla, the anchor of the evening.
ELECTION THEME PARTIES
Recently, a party was hosted by Sunita and Puneet Jaiswal that had election as its theme. The dress code was also neta style of kurta-pyjama complete with a topi. "We wanted to bring in the spirit of the election, the flavour of the season, in our party, so even the games were in sync with the theme. The guests had to choose the Prime Minister among themselves and those who got the highest vote were given prizes," informs Manisha Kishnani, the winner of the game.
(L-R) Minakshi, Shalini and Sangeeta with placards at a party, urging people to vote (BCCL)
Similarly an installation ceremony of a club was teamed with spreading awareness about voting. Even the invite for the event had the message of Vote For A Better India – Matdaan aap ki zimmedari, taqat aur kartavya hai. "The idea was to spread a message, without sounding preachy, so we added a dash of humour as well, through a skit that dwelled on the topic of elections. We also wanted to convey to the guests, that the message should not remain with them but they should also encourage the staff working at their home or business establishments, to go and vote," said Nidhee Kapoor, the convener of the event.
POLITICS OF POLARISATION
With Uttar Pradesh being the hub of rajneeti, how can the subject not be disccussed at social events too often leading to heated arguments. With passions running really high at the time of elections, parties in town are witnessing heated discussions even among friends, with each defending their favoured party or neta. To calm down the rather frayed nerves a party musical party was recently hosted where discussing politics was a taboo. "We had invited guests with diverse political leanings, who are often involved in heated arguments on social media, to just enjoy music and good food. As most of these guests invited had a passion for singing, so a live band was arranged," said Ankita Khattry, who hosted the bash along with her husband Manish. Shipra Bhargava, a guest at the party said, "It was a welcome change since politics is creating quite a rift among friends."
Reception of wedding of Ajeet and Garima where an oath to vote was taken by the guests (BCCL)
WEDDING VOWS OF VOTING
Even the weddings are not spared by the fervour of elections. During the wedding reception of sportsperson Ajeet Singh, who recently got married, the guests were administered an oath of casting their vote. The newlyweds, Ajeet and Garima, not only took the pledge themselves but encouraged others to also increase the voting percentage by using their voting rights during the election. The oath was administered by Neelu Mishra an athlete herself and SVEEP (Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation) icon. "There is no better occasion than weddings to spread the word. You can address a large gathering, which otherwise takes a lot of time. Moreover, weddings have mixed participation of men, women, first-time voters, so we could address all of them simultaneously," said Neelu.