Valentine’s Day | Love in the era of -ships?

Explore how evolving relationships and 'ships' redefine love for Gen Z this Valentine’s Day, amidst commitment fears and self-discovery.

It is the best of times and the worst of times as Valentine’s season is finally here.

From flowers, chocolates and love letters to the far less sophisticated DMs, love is “expected” to be in the air this time of the year for a fortunate few. But, if you are not one of them, there are plenty of Anti-Valentine’s Day festivities going around, like DJ Nights, single tours and so on.

However, there is a group in between that stands shakily between the two clear boundaries of singlehood and committed relationships. It is where an entire generation persists, albeit meekly.

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Often undefined with the added burden of a ‘ship’ in its suffix, unlabelled romantic or sexual relationships like ‘situationships’ for instance, lack clear commitment or plans for the future, its younger cousin, ‘textationship’, a romantic or intimate connection that relies almost exclusively on texting and messaging or the brief ‘nanoship’, which focuses exclusively on the present, are some other examples of the in-betweeners.

This season, Malayalis seem sure about their take on these connections. Discussions among youth circles are rife with conversations about whether the ‘ship’ has sailed for long-term commitments. Experts seem to be weighing in too.