I am not big on facebook, twitter. Come to that I never really chatted with anyone - all my life I would have chatted for about 30 minutes in all and that too when someone sprang on me when I least expected it. I am not much of a forwarder of mails, quite content to trash the ones I get and not getting all vengeful on my contacts. I am not one for instant messaging not instant updating of my status (which is not much to share mostly). So when someone added me on to the whatsapp business I had no clue what I was getting into. I had only heard of people taking pictures and sending them off using this great new invention of mankind and sending messages free of cost and chatting away because its free.
It was a group of my old college mates, people whom I don't remember much now. They were a bunch of normal, boring people so I did not know what to expect. For precisely two minutes! And then the group descended on me and one another. Suddenly I found that all my old mates had become very different personalities. Some had become extremely gregarious (Hi, how are you, long time no see, how are wife and kids yaar) which they were not in real life when I knew them. Some were actively seeking information and knowledge from all over the world and were sharing it freely (did you know that India is the only country too blah blah, did you know that you could die in a million ways after you are born etc), something which was missing then. Some were keen on improving our lives and had a bit of advise for us every morning in terms of sharing quotes and information (an apple a day keeps the doctor away, good morning friends). Some felt our lives needed humour and forwarded many jokes which brought much mirth in the group. Many had become very polite and caring online personalities (great to hear such advise from you bhaiyya). Some had become extremely clear on their political views and were fringing on the radical. Some others insisted on exposing us to the harsh realities of life by sending us the most gruesome pictures and videos they could find (share with all you care about else you will die or something like that). Some wanted to improve our libido and shared slightly naughty stuff (these got most responses). All this at a frenetic pace that I must confess I have not time to run through most. I am unemployed and I wonder how these guys are managing it all with an active job. Maybe they outsource readers.
What I was struck by really was how badly I had misjudged these wonderful people. How this awful bunch had evolved into such fun, sharing, caring, polite, knowledgeable people with so much information they want to share is something one can only credit that app called whatsapp surely. I am completely overwhelmed by this realisation. I am also exhausted from reading all the stuff these fine people are putting up there - from rare Sardar jokes to how we should escape health issues and videos of the world's greatest disasters. I am also totally complexed. While all my friends were growing up into these smart, well informed, courageous people after college days, I must confess that I have remained a rather ill-informed, less than articulate, less than polite specimen who cannot even put stuff up for the crowd on whatsapp to enjoy and improve themselves as citizens, fathers, husbands, mothers, voters, patients etc.
Hopefully I will. And soon. At the rate at which I am receiving information and tips and advice on whatsapp I will soon turn into a philosopher, self help guru, current affairs expert with a good stock of jokes. And then I can also share them with unsuspecting and unimproved blokes.
It was a group of my old college mates, people whom I don't remember much now. They were a bunch of normal, boring people so I did not know what to expect. For precisely two minutes! And then the group descended on me and one another. Suddenly I found that all my old mates had become very different personalities. Some had become extremely gregarious (Hi, how are you, long time no see, how are wife and kids yaar) which they were not in real life when I knew them. Some were actively seeking information and knowledge from all over the world and were sharing it freely (did you know that India is the only country too blah blah, did you know that you could die in a million ways after you are born etc), something which was missing then. Some were keen on improving our lives and had a bit of advise for us every morning in terms of sharing quotes and information (an apple a day keeps the doctor away, good morning friends). Some felt our lives needed humour and forwarded many jokes which brought much mirth in the group. Many had become very polite and caring online personalities (great to hear such advise from you bhaiyya). Some had become extremely clear on their political views and were fringing on the radical. Some others insisted on exposing us to the harsh realities of life by sending us the most gruesome pictures and videos they could find (share with all you care about else you will die or something like that). Some wanted to improve our libido and shared slightly naughty stuff (these got most responses). All this at a frenetic pace that I must confess I have not time to run through most. I am unemployed and I wonder how these guys are managing it all with an active job. Maybe they outsource readers.
What I was struck by really was how badly I had misjudged these wonderful people. How this awful bunch had evolved into such fun, sharing, caring, polite, knowledgeable people with so much information they want to share is something one can only credit that app called whatsapp surely. I am completely overwhelmed by this realisation. I am also exhausted from reading all the stuff these fine people are putting up there - from rare Sardar jokes to how we should escape health issues and videos of the world's greatest disasters. I am also totally complexed. While all my friends were growing up into these smart, well informed, courageous people after college days, I must confess that I have remained a rather ill-informed, less than articulate, less than polite specimen who cannot even put stuff up for the crowd on whatsapp to enjoy and improve themselves as citizens, fathers, husbands, mothers, voters, patients etc.
Hopefully I will. And soon. At the rate at which I am receiving information and tips and advice on whatsapp I will soon turn into a philosopher, self help guru, current affairs expert with a good stock of jokes. And then I can also share them with unsuspecting and unimproved blokes.
1 comment:
there was a time when we were zapped. Now, it's Whatsapped!
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