This Valentine's Day, the Pink Underwear Group says 'Drink Up!'

In the wake of the violence against women in Mangalore, India two weeks ago, where single women out for a nice night were attacked by members of an unapologetically reactionary group called the Sri Ram Sena, an organization called "A Consortium of Pub-going, Loose and Forward Women" based in New Delhi did the only logical thing they could do to retaliate--form a Facebook group, and call for all Indian women, and women all around the world, to send pink chaddi, or panties, to the Sri Ram Sena's leaders.

Astronomically more popular than 29-year-old founder Nisha Susan ever expected, the Facebook group's membership has surged to over 31,000 in less than two weeks. And this Sunday, on which Sri Ram Sena leader Pramod Mutalik "has vowed to force unmarried couples found together on Valentine’s Day to either get married or to tie rakhis - string bracelets - on their wrists signifying that they are brother and sister," the ladies of the Pink Chaddi are going one step further, encouraging women everywhere to rejoice in a little politically correct cocktail imbibement. On their equally wildly popular blog, with over a thousand responses to their last post alone, they list some guidelines for what to do and how to share the feminist fun, even if you don't find alcohol pleasing to the palate:

On Valentine's Day we do a Pub Bharo action. Go to a pub wherever you are. From Kabul to Chennai to Guwahati to Singapore to LA women have signed up. It does not matter if you are actually not a pub-goer or not even much of a drinker. Let us raise a toast (it can be juice) to Indian women. Take a photo or video. We will put it together (more on how later) and send this as well to the Sri Ram Sena.

It's a movement that's both inspiring and oddly exhilirating. Who knew Facebook and booze could be so truly rebellious? We'll have to remember this one if our own nation's reactionary religious wing ever trample through our rights to rock the Beauty Bar on a Saturday night.

Photo by Cinemafia via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr