Of pre-adolescent gods and demi-gods!

Growing up, I used to collect posters/pictures of actors, Aamir Khan and Madhuri Dixit obsessively. I had claimed that I liked them and had a diverse assortment of pictures (sourced and cut from popular magazines, Filmfare and Women's Era, among some) of the two which had multiple poses/expressions and clothing. Thinking of those times in the present make me seem a tad foolish because a) I had never watched any film of the two, b) I could not claim why I had liked them enough to collect many pictures and c) I was/am not a fan material. No one had the courtesy to even ask me why I had gone on a steadfast mission of collecting the pictures except my mom who believed that idolising anyone except Jesus was a crime!

Well, I collected and proclaimed my love for them. Their films were released and I did not know much about them because we did not have a TV. My only knowledge of these actors were their songs which I heard while passing by the tea-shops which blared their latest top hits and my friends who had the fortune of watching TV and creating envy in the mind of the naive little girl who believed that TV was the gift reserved for only some lucky households.

My love for stars and celebrities extended to cricketers as well - Kapil Dev! I vaguely remember the wild winning of the World Cup in 1983 - I was 3 and we had no TV but I remember maybe because of the adults (my father, uncle, neighbour) discussing the matches or my father reading aloud from the newspaper - The Times of India (when it was still worth its salt and not reduced to TOIlet!). I had also developed a fondness for Vivian Richards, the charming West Indies erstwhile captain! I had followed the lives of these celebrities who I had liked and got to know of the various dalliances - all through people who discussed them!

Today when I think back, I wonder how this all could come about - Kapil Dev had huge bunny teeth and had a horrible voice - the Palmolive ka jawab nahi! effect. Then the Television entered our lives. The enchantment with these celebrities started to wane. I started discarding the picture-cuttings of Aamir Khan and Madhuri Dixit. I had grown past the pictures and started watching their films. I liked some and disliked many but never let go of the fact that I liked Aamir Khan; Madhuri had completely worn off my mind and whenever I see Kapil Dev and Vivian Richards, I cannot stop myself from exclaiming, "I used to like them. They were my favourites."

Today, while reading The Hindu's sports column, the toothy smile of Kapil Dev and him jubliantly holding the 1983 World Cup made me travel to the time when I was a three-year old who liked Kapil Dev and wanted to meet him some day!

Are you on Facebook yet?

This morning while reading The Hindu, the headline "Facebook . . . one billion and counting" made me stop reading the paper. Why? I could not help but gush at the impact of Facebook on our lives. Well, for once I am going to ignore the ones who shout, "We are more often online and have forgotten real relationships." Even when I wrote a post on "How personal the virtual can become?" I did not fully wonder at the idea of Facebook. Now, how this sudden change, you might be coerced to wonder. Well, I have ample reasons to be. Read on and nod ;)

One, I spend most of my time on Facebook, interacting with several like-minded individuals who offer support, courage and excellent advice on anything under the sun. There are many groups in which I can discuss any random topic and not be judged. If someone likes it, they will respond otherwise they will just be silent observers. Well, in real life I cannot even think discussing some of the wild topics that I have discussed in these groups. It is just the freedom of speech that these groups provide that enable me to passionately discuss diverse taboo topics.

Second, on a grim day when one is seriously working and opens Facebook for some time, there are the funny messages that colour the home page. These messages instantly bring a smile and sometimes even laughter! I just love that burst of energy during odd times of the day. here I must mention my blogger friend Janaki who posts the most hilarious messages and forces me to break into laughter. On duller days, her inspirational messages have uplifted me up many a time. Tell me where else can one find all these things together in one package. Can a real friend, no matter how close make you laugh/smile/uplift you at the odd hours of your 'under the weather' times? Maybe yes but not always (Please don't think that I am substituting FB for people. It the people in FB who make the journey worthwhile).

A screen shot of Janaki's Facebook humour :)

Three, the amount of knowledge one gains by reading the various quotes, random videos and new items posted on a friend's wall is quite huge. And we can get all this for free even when we don't expect them. A quote about giving, a video about Noam Chomsky, a blog which discusses Fibromyalgia (I didn't even know what it was before this post by Corinne).

Four, my love of cooking is given colour and expertise by the many recipes that are posted by fellow bloggers and friends. Thanks to them, now I never have a grey moment in my kitchen.

Five, old songs are resurrected when I snatch a quick moment. Karen see to it that she picks some good old country music and posts it for us to jive and jazz (in our minds, of course).

I can go on and on about the various brownie points of Facebook and how glad that I am to be a part of it. Of course, there are many privacy issues, time-consuming tales, and other such but today I am happy happy to be part of this network. Ah, I forgot that I have also met wonderful new people through this space. I get the power to know people through their interests and posts and then connect with them (this happens in the old style ofcourse, right?).

Well, so what keeps you going with Facebook inspite of the many issues? Are you on Facebook?

Image 1: Internet
Image 2: Internet

You might want to check this post by Shilpa Garg for an exactly opposite take on this post.