The Internet era commenced in the past decade or so and has become an integral part of our lives. Modern everyday life is intrinsically dependant on internet and if per chance the connection is lost for sometime, we feel as if life has been sucked out of us and there is nothing worthwhile to do. 'Net connection aaya ki nahin' remains the topmost query. When it gets finally restored, we have a sigh of relie!..Jaan mein jaan aa jaati hai!!
I wonder how we survived in the 80s and 90s without such frills. Regimented TV timings with a couple of channels, a standard fixed phone line, and barely any knowledge about the virtual world, we lived merrily in a self-contained manner.
We read books for knowledge, scoured newspapers for political news, heard radio for latest songs, went to the theatre to watch latest movies, sent letters and greeting cards to our friends and relatives to keep in touch.
Binaca Geet Mala, the top 20 Bollywood songs on Radio Ceylon, helmed by the man with a sonorous voice, Ameen Siyani, for aeons was the coveted program whole of India listened to earnestly.
Chitra haar on TV was awaited with bated breath, the songs played in it were discussed the next day in schools. People cursed if the electricity went off perchance during that time and they missed a couple of songs. Amitabh's songs were icing on the cake and his movies were a craze on the big and small screen both.
The onset of colour TV and VCR in mid-80s was an entertainment revolution. Poor quality VHS tapes were lapped up for the sheer thrill of watching movies at will in the comfort of their home. The whole family gathered in the living room to watch the magic unfold.
Neighbours dropped in on weekends to enjoy watching the evening movie together, sharing a Cuppa and having gupshups.
School diaries, slam books, autograph diary, greeting cards and titbit memorabilia were a huge hit amongst teenagers. They gave an outlet to our expressions of love, joys, friendships, pain, regrets, anger etc.
Buying greeting cards used to be an event. While sending it to friends was a customised activity (as per the occasion and the mood), buying Diwali or New Years cards for relatives was done in bulk and in a standardised manner. The one with the best handwriting in the house was accorded the esteemed task of writing inside the card and the addresses on the envelopes. What used to be a fun activity in childhood became a mundane chore later on.
With friends, however, it remained a sweet something, to write well and pretty, with different colour pens, decorating with stickers and glitter, drawing hearts and flowers, smileys etc.. It was as personalised as one could make it.
Photo albums were much treasured and a symbol of pride. A limited number of photos could be clicked in each reel and hence no indiscriminate click! Click!
Digital cameras and then smartphones with sharp cameras have led to a deluge of photos in a virtual world but scant ones in hard copies.
Technology has been a boon for Generation Y getting information and entertainment at the snap of their fingers. This digital onslaught on an individual's life is complete and absolute. Any personal preference to be a passive spectator and watch the circus from afar is scoffed at and one is pulled deep into the vortex of silliness and superficiality.
In this scenario, life without Internet for many is a suffocating experience.
Telling my kids about our non-Internet days elicits a curious and puzzling response, almost quizzical, wondering about the staid, dull life of their parents! When I go nostalgic and reminiscence about the age-old charm of LP records, they point out Spotify to me. Their sweet enlightening ways apart, I regret the growth of 'too easy, too available' culture where subtlety sleeps soundly and in-your-face, omnipresent, forever stalking Internet mafia lurks all around!
Can you escape their encounters? Not unless you wish to be labelled pre-historic by Internet gurus!
As a member of a generation which has witnessed both sides of pre & post Internet life, I find the obsession with Internet frightening. For all its advantages and benefits, our complete dependence on it and our weird, painful wail in its absence proves our slavery to technology rather than mastering it!
That said, the right to choose the availability, the limits and the extent, should lie with the users only. What good is something if it can be taken away by the government in power at will?
The perils of Internet shouldn't outshine the thrill of it!
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