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JAIPUR, INDIA, February 14, 2003: In a unique Valentine’s Day celebration, eleven couples married for more than 50 years renewed their marriage vows in front of the holy fire, reaffirming their love for each other. Brain child of Mitroday Gandhi, President Rashtriya Yuva Chetna Parishad, the decision to celebrate these couples was taken to motivate the younger generation to view marriage as a relationship of love, trust and devotion that involved sacrifice and service to nurture a family. “It is an attempt to harmonize a Western ethos with Indian morality and customs,” said Gandhi, especially when “relationships break at the drop of a hat. Valentine’s Day has come to signify loud exhibitionism and commercialization of a tender feeling, it is necessary that we learn from the example of these people who’ve spent a lifetime with one another in building a home and a family.” The significance of such a lasting bond was not lost on the younger generation who attended the celebrations in droves. Said young Sadhana Agnihotri, eyeing her grand parents’ remarriage with admiration, “Their trust and fondness for each other is an eye opener. Their love has helped us grow into a united family.”

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