She makes excuses to talk to me, is she interested?

Dear Diana,
I have been working at an MNC for the past seven months. By nature, I am a very shy and reserved person. I have never had a girlfriend throughout my life. Recently, a girl who works in my office, but in a different team, has been trying to get close to me.

Though she sits far away from me, she finds excuses to come near my desk on the pretext of taking printouts (since my desk is close to the office printer). She starts chatting regarding work, and then she looks at me inappropriately, and gives me lewd gestures.

I am not very knowledgeable in these things, and I feel scared of her intentions at times. At the same time, I know that she is a nice girl, and I feel that I can spend the rest of my life with her. I am terribly confused about her. I keep thinking about her the whole day.

I feel attracted towards her in a different way. I think I am falling for her. Please clear my confusion and suggest a solution to my problem.

Name withheld

Dear Friend,
I am confused about what the problem is. There is a girl who likes you. You are shy, and won't make advances but she has made it amply clear that she is interested. Though I am not sure what you mean by "lewd gestures," and that is a bit worrying.

Now you are attracted to her too, so go for it. What's to be scared of? Unless your worry is that your organisation will object, or that she is trying to get together with you to further her career, I would say: ask her out for a coffee and a movie. See how it goes on these dates and then decide if she is the girl you want to spend your life with. Don't be in such a tearing hurry.

New hairstyle: I say yes, mom says no

Dear Diana,
I am 17. I want to get my hair done in the Afro style but my mom has strictly said that she will never allow it. How do I convince her?

Kavita

Dear Kavita,
Getting an Afro is a bit drastic. Are you sure about this? I suggest you get an Afro style wig and see how you like it. Wear that around for sometime and maybe she will get used to the idea. Also see how your friends react to it. It is a bit clownish, no?

Wedding venue creating tension...

Dear Diana,
My son, who has been in the US for the past three years, and his fiancee (who is a US citizen of Indian origin) have decided to get married there. My husband and I are fine with it, but our relatives are objecting. They believe it is not possible to observe all the traditional rituals in the correct manner in a foreign country.

They also say he should not get married without his relatives and yet, they refuse to travel to the US. My husband and I don't want a happy occasion to create tension and yet want my son and daughter-in-law to do as they wish. How do we resolve this?

Vyjanthi

Dear Vyjanthi,
I think it is the wedding of your son, and he and his bride should be allowed to decide where they should get married. But if it is important to you to please your relatives, then you can have a court marriage and a reception in the US, and then ask the couple if they'd be willing to have a traditional wedding in India. A win-win situation, no?