Vaping – The latest obsession

Year 1961. Movie– Hum Dono. The ever debonair Dev Anand while smoking a cigarette declared– Har fikr ko dhuen mein udata chala gaya– that he has blown out his sorrows through those thick clouds of smoke.

Year 1972. Movie- Hare Rama Hare Krishna. Zeenat Aman, diva of 70’s drowned deep into her zone of ecstasy under the influence of  dhuaan when she sang– Dum Maaro Dum Mit Jaaye Gum. This movie served a gentle reminder during those times about how drugs can ruin our lives.

Fast Forward to 2023—Almost a month back, my sixteen year old son came rushing to me after his coaching class. In a horrified tone, he inquired…Papa, I am being constantly pushed to Vape?

Shocked…I asked…Vape! What’s that?

He replied…Papa, it’s a form of a flavoured cigarette. I am being forced daily by a bunch of guys to give it a try. When I deny, I am booed and bullied.

Leave them, then are there…They are not the right boys…I shot back.

‘Kis kis ko chod du papa’…Most of the boys are hooked to these intoxicants. It you don’t join them, you are condemned and insulted.

He showed me a few streaks on his snapchat where youngsters were vaping and thoroughly enjoying the euphoria it generated.

After a vigorous brain storming session, he understood my view point. But, that interaction left me pondering over this growing fad. The more I thought about it more it left me in a state of quandary.

Undoubtedly, dhuaan is the latest obsession today. ‘Smoke…Enjoy….Flaunt’ is the new mantra. Today, youngsters of colleges, schools, hostels are unabashedly vaping, smoking, puffing and are hooked to hookahs.

Why is the society moving towards this addiction ? 

What is so exciting in this intoxication? 

What drives the youth towards this fixation?

Well, fact remains, intoxication of any form is deeply addictive. In our life while positive intoxication has the capacity to take us to great heights, regressive intoxication can spell disaster.

Let me give an analogy of positive intoxication from the game of cricket. Few decades back, there was a batsman. The bowlers used to bowl him outside off-stump but he used to let those deliveries go. Hour after hour. He was so intoxicated to his batting technique that he never let the pressure of not scoring affect him. His greatest strength was his emotional control over himself. That was perhaps the reason why he was one of the most fearsome batsmen in test matches, not because he blasted bowlers out of their attack, but because he grinded them into submission. He was Sunil Gavaskar, a magnificent batsman who was deeply intoxicated to his technique and methodology.

 Negative intoxication on the other hand is like a prison where the locks are on the inside. Drugs too are like one such prison where you love to be a prisoner. Ironically, youngsters are so besotted by drugs that they never admit it to be a problem in the first place. Usually, the debilitating reality of addiction reaches their home only when a cocaine addict hits rock bottom. In that stage, time, money and human interaction cease to play any reformatory role due to this malignant obsession.

Perhaps, the reason of this dhuuan obsession is the insecurity gripping the youngsters. They are trying to hide their insecurites under this cloud of smoke. Interestingly, youth are being joined by middle aged uncles and aunties too who are grappling with their mid life crisis under the shadow of this intoxication. No wonders, today kitty parties have turned into ‘Dhuaan Parties’

If I go a bit further, truth does not go down well in the society we live. We are living in a fake world which is full of appearances and where people do not want you to say…I am not okay. For not being okay is a sign of weakness. Hiding weakness under smoke of this intoxication is turning into a pandemic.

The fact remains, as long as you look okay, your wardrobe is distinctive, your waist size perfect and you show up in the society smilingly, no one is interested to know the reason of gunfire blazing within you. They don’t give a damn whether you are a cocaine addict, a nicotine smoker or a full blown alcoholic.

Is there any solution to this rampant malaise ?

Choose your intoxications wisely. When passion becomes your intoxication, you can reach pinnacle of glory. But when drug becomes your intoxication, it turns you into a hostage and acts like an abductor. You keep loving your abductor despite the abductor abusing you, torturing you and devastating you.

Had Dev Anand been around today, he would have most definitely altered the lyrics of the song in accordance with the current scenario … Har dhuen ki fikr mein…main gaata chala gaya !

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