The truth is that Valentine’s day originated in Gujarat, India. It is a well-known fact that Gujarati men, the Patels in particular, mistreated their wives (the Patelianis). One day – it just happened to be February 14 – a Pateliani, having been tortured enough by her husband, finally chose to rebel by beating up her husband with the rolling pin, known as the “velan” in Gujarati. It was the same velan that she used every day but this time, instead of the dough for chapatis, it was used to flatten her husband.

Her valour inspired her entire community and Gujarati women picked up their velans and beat up their husbands. There was an outburst of male moaning and in no time, a tradition was born. To commemorate that first day when the brave Pateliani had picked up her velan, thousands and thousands of Gujarati women did the same and beat up their husbands. The wives had the satisfaction of thrashing their husbands and the men experienced the sublime joy of submitting to the women they loved. Soon, the men realised that there was a simple way of getting around the ordeal of being beaten. They began to buy presents and flowers to charm their wives away from the velan and a tradition was born. As Gujarat fell under the influence of Western culture, the tradition was known as “Velan time” before becoming anglicised into Valentine’s.