FOR some people, facing the onslaught of Valentine’s Day flowers, candy and marketing can be overwhelming if you are single. For Riya Patel, it’s a reason to celebrate love — platonic love — even by long distance. Welcome to the American phenomenon of Galentine’s Day, feted on Feb 13th — a “holiday” gaining in popularity with each passing year, and also gaining in terms of its message of female empowerment. “I’ve organised this giant group FaceTime with all my closest girlfriends. All of us are going to get on the phone and celebrate each other,” says Patel, a 22-year-old research analyst from the US capital. “And then I’ll just celebrate me. That’s probably going to end up being some restorative yoga in my bedroom and then making something with bourbon in it.”

Galentine’s Day was born in 2010 during an episode of the American sitcom Parks & Recreation, when main character Leslie Knope (played by Amy Poehler) hosts a brunch on Feb 13 for her best gal pals. It was conceived as a defiant response to Valentine’s Day — a statement that the traditional romantic love is not the only kind worth honouring. Galentine’s Day has grown from being a semi-joke to a semi-serious holiday — and it’s generating big money. Many businesses have started selling themed products — cards, wine glasses, candies, cookies. Big box stores have dedicated sections for the event. Bars and restaurants are organising happy hours and parties. A search on the hashtag “#galentinesday” on Instagram reveals thousands of photos of pink balloons or ladies’ brunches. Galentine’s Day sales are predicted to bring in a 20 per cent total revenue increase over the next three years, according to an estimate by NPD retail analyst Marshal Cohen.

For Patel and others, the holiday goes beyond rebelling against Valentine’s Day and partying to also include a time of personal reflection — more than just “ovaries before brovaries”, as Leslie Knope would say. “It started out as very shallow,” Patel said. But now, “it feels bigger than just celebrating female friends. It’s a day to reflect on people who support you in your life.”

Published in Dawn, February 14th, 2019