ꦕWhen we are born, we come fully equipped with the capacity to love and be loved. But the world we step into quickly teaches us that love is not just about emotions—it is bound by boundaries, rules, and identities shaped by society and politics. Love, in its purest form, should be free, but it never is.
In 2022, ahead of Valentine’s Day, Outlook’s edition All We Need Is Love🍨 was dedicated to love. Ashutosh Sharma wrote about the killings in the name of honour, which continue in India. He described that the scary pictures of the crimes, committed in the name of honour, talk about barbarity that social conservatism generates in reaction to the assertion of sexual rights and freedom of choice regarding love relationships.
Asad Ashraf explored War Against Love: Bogey of ‘Love Jihad’𝓰. Used extensively by right-wing Hindu groups, the term ‘love jihad’ denotes an alleged conspiracy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into marriage and religious conversion.
In Lament of Separationꦯ, Naseer Ganai, based in Srinagar, wrote about Habba Khatun’s sensuous songs that make both young and old emotional. In the 16th century, after the Mughals annexed the independent kingdom of Kashmir and exiled its last king, Yousuf Shah Chak, his beloved queen, Habba Khatun, was left wailing. In the wilderness, she sang for her beloved, pleading for one glimpse. Yousuf never returned, but 500 years down the line, Kashmiris believe Habba’s songs still echo in the Valley.
To read more stories from the issue, click here☂. This Valentine’s Day, Outlook's latest magazine issue explores love and loneliness, two universal emotions.
