Mango Celebrities
There is this immensely
talented singer who re- tweets all the compliments coming her way on the social
networking platform of Twitter. If she were to receive those compliments in
person, will she get hold of a microphone and repeat the words of those
admirers? Being the lady that she is, all she would do at max is smile
graciously and accept the compliments with humility.
Why
do people who are otherwise modest and sensible go on unabashedly on social
media about themselves? Why do we change profile pictures so often? Why are we
bothered about the number of Likes? Why is that we exult our achievements on
the white wall with blue borders? What is with the compulsive urge to push
oneself in to the limelight?
The main reason I
perceive is that the virtual world has taken away the awkwardness from people.
Be it sending a contact request to a total stranger or chatting up with a
person who is just an acquaintance, the usual social awkwardness is absent.
This is good when networking with fellow beings is concerned but when it comes
to self-praise, all the grace and humility is lost.
Marketing
of consumer products might have unintentionally kicked off this trend. In the
name of branding, products’ fan pages started propagating information which is
favorable to their image. People would have unknowingly adapted this habit. But
we should understand that we are not products! It is ok to be not ‘Liked’.
Another
aspect is that the social media has made us all in to small time celebrities in
our own right. The visibility of a person has increased manifold. Five years
before, when has there been a time when you were being watched by 100+ people, even
virtually? Never before has your life been chronicled on time lines like it
happens today. Each person is getting the attention of a celebrity and all that
we are doing is to live up to its charm trying hard not to let go of its aura.
Everyone
deserves a chance to blow one’s trumpet. The tipping point though is its frequency –
both the shrill and periodicity. Putting up a profile pic once in a while is
fine but changing it every 30 days might put off people. It is acceptable to seek
reassurances. Seeking appreciation for a hard earned merit is also fine. But it shouldn't be done in a way which puts Narcissus himself to shame.
Eventually, this might
lead to a time when everyone becomes a celebrity which invariably means no one
will remain a celebrity!
Arun
Babu.
"social media has made us all in to small time celebrities in our own right" - I agree :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading Anish :)
Deletegood article,..thinking about it..
ReplyDeleteGlad tht it got u thinkin :)
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