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by Sourabh Mishra

The word “chaddi,” which means underwear in a couple of Indian
languages, has become a potent symbol of protest in its pink avatar by a section of
young online Indians against what is increasingly being seen as the
“Talibanization” of India.

Right-wing Hindu organizations have, over the last few years, taken on
the role of moral authority, policing against what they perceive to be activities
going against the grain of Indian and Hindu culture. This moral
policing often takes on the form of vigilantism, which is a sure-fire
recipe for media coverage. They typically target young couples in
parks and beaches, and the smaller shops selling Valentine’s Day-related merchandise. They physically intimidate these soft-target
victims, usually after giving sufficient notice to the press and
TV channels, to ensure that the cameras are there to put them
in the news.

The latest such incident took place on Jan. 24. Hooligans claiming to be
from a little known right-wing Hindu outfit called Shri Ram Sena
attacked a pub in the coastal city of Mangalore and mercilessly beat
up the young men and women spending a Saturday afternoon there. See a news story here.

The usual expressions of outrage happened with politicians and other
similar creatures getting their own shot at instant media fame, giving
their party-appropriate soundbites. And that would have been the end
of it.

But the age of Facebook activism has now dawned. A bunch of agitated
people, mainly women, created a group called “A Consortium of
Pub-going, Loose and Forward Women” and launched the “pink chaddi
campaign,” which exhorts everyone to send the Ram Sena a pink chaddi on
Valentine’s Day, “because chaddis are forever.”

The silent Indian minority seems to be finding a platform in Facebook
to voice its opinion and it will be interesting to see if this becomes
more than a passing fad. I am personally loving it and am hoping that
this fringe activism soon metamorphoses into a full-blown movement.

Viva la Pink Chaddis!