“Excuse me Aunty” - said a girl in her mid-twenties wearing a tight jeans and a light-coloured top in a crowded metro one Monday morning. Though I consider myself to be young in all aspects still the word “Aunty” made me feel somehow uncomfortable. To further add to my discomfort I was being asked to move a bit aside so that I would not hurt the girl who somehow was regarding herself as a toddler still I believe. Yes, you guessed it right it did arouse a sense of bitterness in me, as I still wasn’t able to figure out the eligibility criteria to be called an “Aunty” or an “Uncle “. We address strangers so easily as “Aunty” or “Uncle” without even considering that it might not be taken very well at the other end. This so-called “Aunty” or “Uncle” culture is not borne out of sheer respect for the elderly but it is more than that. As per me, I feel that there is a subtle sense of insecurity that lies beneath, a kind of “Aging complex” as everyone wants to look young themselves but they want to deliberately make the others feel “Old”. Youth is somehow bracketed within the time frame conventionally say from the beginning of the teens till some mid-twenties or early thirties maybe, and what after that, do we become old or are we forced to become and think like old when neither the body nor the mind acts or feels the same.
Ironically, the youth of today are fans of pop stars, movie stars, and sportspersons who have large variations covering all most in all ages where age is just a number in the real sense of the word and are also regarded as “Super cool” by them but why the same cool youngsters loose their coolness when they move in general public and judge people without even knowing them and label them so easily. It's said that “Don’t ask a man his income and a woman her age”, well how does it matter really, if you do possess a healthy body a healthy mind your full of young and fresh attitude then the age should not really matter. I also, wonder why do women always want to look younger in their teens when every age has its own charm and beauty, it's so graceful to grow older and still feel younger each day. It's just a mind-over-matter issue. We have so many examples of people doing phenomenal things at so-called old age not only in terms of hobbies, business ventures, and talents but as far as winning medals and inspiring so many millions of people.
I reside in a colony which is surrounded by many schools due to which many times children strike their cricket balls out of the school’s boundary, they too address strangers as “Aunty” or “Uncle” for giving the ball back. Maybe, I feel that I too am suffering from this age complex myself as I myself don’t feel that age is such a big deal. It's quite strange that the physical attributes of the person the weight, the color of hair, and the way of dressing play a major part in giving someone a right to judge others. Another instance which I remember is that once my brother addressed someone as “Aunty” a married lady with her daughters in their teens and she was offended very badly and later her daughters cited an example of an old man who used to say everyone as uncle or aunty. So we got the message loud and clear “NO AUNTY PLEASE” Another example which I recall is when a doctor used to ask his patients “So sir, how young are you?” and when the patient used to answer “Forty”, “Fifty”, “Sixty” or “Seventy” he used to reply excitingly, so there we go you are sixty years younger! Bravo!. Doesn’t it sound just great? So dude, just get up shake yourself and no matter how many years ago you landed on this beautiful planet just be aware of yourself and what you have to offer to the world, feel young without letting others feel old… and the next time whenever someone addresses you as “Excuse me aunty” or “ uncle” don’t mind they’re just respecting you for the great person you are and even if they are not... who cares, we are forever young, aren’t we?