As soon as I landed at Mumbai, I checked my blackberry it was full of messages and also I got my Facebook Notifications. I was happy to see so many people writing to me. What made me more happy was a call from home. However, what made me more happy was a call from home asking if I have reached safely.
Coming back from a foreign trip after 2 months where I was not using a cell phone, I realised that there is something missing in my daily schedule. It took a month for me to realize that the thing was ‘Phone calls’. It might be a thing of the ‘passe’ with the encroachment of the messenger on the phone. You have Blackberry, Whats app, E buddy, Message Packs and now even facebook chat on phone.
So what’s missing in this age of high tech communication? Well firstly a phone call establishes one to one connection. As you are involved with the person you are talking to and you guess their expression through their tone. While the chat system, enables multiple communication so there is no guarantee that your message has the desired effect on the listener. Besides, smileys are not equipped enough to covey emotions. Take the example of your birthday. What will you like more? Someone singing Happy Birthday to you.. or someone writing on a chat’ Hey, Happy Birthday! Cheers J‘.
Also, the chats have a standard format wherein you start with something like ‘Hey! Wass up?’ and then you speak a few lines. After that there is a kind of an awkward moment and you stop texting. Besides, once a phone call is made one topic leads to other and you end up sharing so much information and emotions that there is a sense of satisfaction. The chats seldom provide you that.
So, I thought I should call up my good friend and hold a conversation with her. However, we were sans topic in the 2nd minute. This was the impact social media had created. As, I write this blog through a medium which is nothing else but social media, I make a genuine effort to start using the telephone. As it makes me nostalgic and the long night conversations which I had which took me to the height of self-discovery begin again.
Can you hear my appeal? Hello!
