word on the street is that flirting is a dying art, and Gen Z is the prime suspect. Why? Apparently, we're too busy analysing every eye contact, emoji, and pick-up lines. Who would have thought that my fellow 20-somethings who make "being low-key" their entire brand would get roasted for taking ourselves too seriously. In our defence, the whole romantic-teasing could use a modern dictionary update. The line between cringe and classy is so blurry, it's basically invisible -- hard to make anyone blush.
There are plenty of moves you could make in 2024 to come off as a fabulous flirt. Liking your dating app match's Instagram story is, obviously, flirting. So is sending hyper-specific romantic pop-culture posts to each other and asking "us when?" "What is your sun sign" also falls in the same category. But complimenting someone on their looks? Borderline hostile. "Smoking hot" is not a compliment because smoking kills. Calling someone pataka is simply tone-deaf when you factor in Delhi's AQI. In fact, 'bomb' as a flattery is passe. It reminds people of war and genocide. Comparisons to universal phenomena also fail in getting the attention. One girl was told by a boy on Hinge that she feels like the calm of cold water at the parched hour of 2 am. "Did he just call me thanda paani?" she said, while swiping him left.