The new- age rakhi

In my last post, I was talking about how shop keepers, too, have to be innovative all the time, however small or big the products are. The traditional rakhi which is to be tied on the brother's wrist in return for a promise of keeping the sister safe from all trouble, has moved from it being made from a simple white thread with a small coloured dot; to multi-coloured, big dialed rakhis; to fancy, expensive rakhis with zari and sequences; to 'designer rakhis'; to rakhis with cartoon characters like Spiderman, Chota Bheem, Doreamon, Shaktimaan, Hulk, etc. As a kid, I remember going to the store to buy rakhis for my brothers and always buying some simple white rakhis for my mother, along with ours, which were slightly more colourful, but still traditional, elegant and simple. This time, I had stopped at a small general store selling rakhis to buy some for my brothers, when I noticed a kid throw a tantrum, park himself in the middle of the road, and wailing until his mother, out of embarrassment, succumbed to the demand, and got the boy a Ben 10 rakhi, which, I over heard, he wanted for himself. He didn't even have a sister! I wonder if there will be any tradition left for this new generation which will be pure and simple, untouched by unnecessary adaptations and tricks by marketing companies.