DU Students Will Watch ‘Kabir Singh’ And ‘Titanic’ To Understand Relationships

The world of modern dating is hard and, thanks to the unending slew of dating apps,  filled with so many intricacies that it won’t be far-fetched to want a manual or an expert-led course on navigating it. As it turns out, the latter is now possible.

Students at Delhi University can now opt to learn the workings of friendships, romantic relationships and how their own emotional well-being relates to these with a new elective course, titled ‘Negotiating Intimate Relationships’.

Starting from the 2025-26 academic calendar, this course has been introduced as a result of a general growing concern over rising crimes among teenagers that are, more often than not, triggered by failed or toxic relationships.

The course, offered by the Department of Psychology, will be open to students of any academic background and will unfold through four key modules. The first one will delve into how friendships and close relationships form. The second examines the theories of love and sexuality, including Robert Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love and the Two-factor theory. The course will then go on to explore the warning signs of unhealthy relationships, like jealousy, gaslighting, manipulation, and abuse. Finally, the students will learn how to build supportive, meaningful and lasting relationships.

According to the university, the course will be an interactive one. The activities will include critically reviewing films like Kabir Singh and Titanic, to understand how pop culture portrays love and conflict, and engaging in debates about dating culture and analysing the role of social media in shaping relationships. 

“Films reflect how love is often idealised or even normalised when it's toxic. But when analysed in a classroom, they can become powerful tools to deconstruct unhealthy patterns,” said DU faculty member Latika Gupta in an interview with Times Of India, "If we want to prevent emotional harm, we will have to start having honest conversations early. No one teaches how to handle rejection or set boundaries. If we learn this early, some of the tragedies wouldn't happen.”

While there are many intersecting factors that determine a person’s attitude towards relationships, both romantic or platonic, a course like this could be invaluable to be better equipped with the tools one might need to understand this complex world. Relationship coach Vidya Dakshinamoorthy says the initiative is “absolutely amazing” and should, in fact, be introduced much earlier in the academic structure.

“Today, any kind of relationship is difficult. Everyone is struggling and fighting their own battles,” she said, adding that the exposure to social media and relationships is starting at a much younger age. “There’s no place for kids to learn all this. Usually, both parents are busy managing the household and dealing with their own issues. Emotional regulation has taken a backseat in nuclear families, and it all culminates in how we react to the other relationships in our lives.”

We can’t say that we disagree!