The last time I wrote on mobile based apps being a new form
of social media, little did I know that I was going to take it a step beyond my
experimentation phase and possibly adopt it as a patron. A part of the
evaluation process was to try and gauge if the latent need for social
interaction was something very personal to me or was there anyone else under
the some with similar interests. (yeah that’s where I draw the Star Trek
analogy). This meant I had to get some positive responses and some level of
interactions before I could get an understanding of what are people looking for
on these apps. Not to mention, it also
gave me an insight into how the social fabric of the country was changing and
what could possibly be the next stage.
One thing is for sure; tinder, two, badoo, woo, or zoosk- it
is easier to change and upgrade applications; you cannot change the way people
behave or their attitudes. Yes- most of the new and updated apps have a decent
level security perimeter to get rid of obvious leaching and stalking. But even today,
the initial thought that you can live a pseudo life on the internet with not
even a hint of your own real self is still prevalent. Even with parallel verifications
over email and login via Facebook accounts, there is still no dearth of fakes
who can circumvent this. After all, it doesn’t take much to create a fake
profile on a social media platform.
From the friends I made, I gather a collective feeling that
the idea of dating is still something we Indians just cannot fathom. Somehow, friends
as a relation between members of the opposite gender comes too low down in priority
on a list of possible associations. So the idea of ‘Fun’ is still connected
with sex rather than shared interest or activities and just hanging out. Now
though some talks did make me a prince amongst the frogs, but it was also
painting a picture that people are unable to rise above their ingrained mentality
of what you do with your online life. It was not uncommon of people blatantly
getting on to just casual sex or a life beyond the limitations of marriage. From
my perspective, the profiles online were mostly unsure of what they were doing
there or what they seek in life. Not to mention, there were a few escort and more
than services hunting for clients.
On an overall, there were also some very plain assumptions
that were being made about people; much on lines of what we hear people talk in
defense for improper conduct towards a gender and possible actions. Like if a person
was in their 30’s and single; separated etc. it does have some perceived notions
which in ways define the character value of the person. We sometimes forget that
a person single beyond their 30’s may have had some priorities above just being
in a committed relation or simply the fact that you don’t meet the right people
at the right hour- but we have a compartment for them. A person who has legally
separated is at times a scum lower than even someone who has had multiple
partners with no strings attached or any real level of committed relations. I’m
not sure what is a bigger flaw; the failure in one relation or a something else
from a social perspective that builds the divide.
I believe we as Indians have come leaps and bounds in terms
of updating our technologies and lifestyles to match up to the rest of the so
called developed world. I guess what now remains is overcoming our shortfalls
of the limbic brain instincts to evolve to a more evolved attitude.
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