What women want. . .

After that last post which was along the lines of the epic, never-ending 'battle of the sexes', this time BlogAdda has prompted me to write about what women want. It's for a contest in association with Pringoo. Click here for details.

"What do women want?" is too general a question and not really a million dollar one like it's commonly believed to be. I am no authority to pass judgement for the entire gender that I belong to. And neither is anyone else, for that matter, because every person is an individual and wants different things. However, there are SOME things that I can safely say most women want:

We want love. Show us you care. No, not by materialistic things, but simply by being there for us, by calling us just to ask how we're doing, by patiently listening when we need to talk, by understanding our point of view in an argument rather than losing your temper and fuelling the battle. Of course, chocolates and thoughtful little gifts now and then don't hurt. :P But, please don't be insensitive and gift us a giant box of Kit-Kats when you know we're on a diet.

We want truth. I can't stress this enough. Read carefully: Please. Just. Be. Honest. But do it tactfully. If a dress looks awful on us, tell us so but suggest something that will look better rather than just stand there pointing out how we've put on weight or got stretchmarks or look older than our age or whatever. Be honest from Day 1. Don't lead us on. Don't make us fall for you if you have no intention of catching us. Don't say you'll call if you're not going to. Most importantly, don't hit us on if you're already in love with someone else. Treating us as second fiddle or as a crutch to get over someone else is lame. And hurtful too. Be a man; be upfront. Not a sissy who says one thing and does another.

We want space. And freedom. Just because we may be your girlfriend/wife, don't expect us to be at your beck and call, anytime, anywhere. We need our own time, to do whatever we want. And we have the right to take our own decisions. Yes, without even consulting you if we don't want to. it doesn't mean we love you any less; it just means we don't need to share every detail of our life with you all the time. Just like you need beer and guys' nights in front of the t.v., we need bubble baths and girls' nights out.

We want understanding, compassion, and consideration. Please remember our birthday without relying on Facebook to remind you. We want respect. Not only for ourselves but our entire gender. Do not treat us like sex objects even if we are really hot and dressed to kill. Do not compare us to other girls, ESPECIALLY not your ex. Hold our gaze when you talk to us. Compliment us, but only if you mean it. Faking things is lame. Do not keep trying to make us laugh; some serious talk is good too.

We want you to have a purpose in life. But we want you to have a fun side too. We want you to take care of your appearance. Kindly shave, or maintain a proper beard rather than a disgusting unruly growth. Shower everyday - toiletries are not too expensive! Smell good, please. Do NOT burp or fart in public. And keep your language clean.

Old fashioned chivalry is good. Chauvinism is not. Kindly get a dictionary and learn the difference between the two. Don't act smarter than you are. Don't throw around your attitude.

We want you to be interesting, intelligent, well-groomed, respectful, polite men. We want you to treat us like interesting, intelligent, well-groomed, respectful, polite women. We want you to be the person that YOU are, not a wannabe Tom Cruise or Shahrukh Khan or any other guy you falsely believe women drool over. Yes, we may drool over them, but we're not going to drool over you if you try to imitate them like a stupid desperado.

You may think that's a lot that we want. But take a moment to reconsider and you'll see that it's pretty much common sense, really. Nothing that you need to watch a movie or read a book or consult any kind of expert to understand.

Great. Now, can someone please tell me what in God's name do men want? (And please don't reply: 'sex'. That's terribly clichéd. I'm sure there is more to guys than that. I just wish I knew what!)