By Soumya Raj:
Once upon a time, there was a smartphone called Blackberry, and its USP was the Blackberry Messenger. This instant messaging application was an exclusive of the Blackberry smartphone, and the charm of it was such that people specifically bought Blackberry phones to talk over Blackberry Messenger. Blackberry was one of the most expensive cell phones available in the market, and owning one was a thing of pride.
But really, is it that big a deal? With the ever growing social media market producing something nasty to ruin our privacy every other day, we don’t have time to pay attention to all the people whose lives revolve around punching texts feverishly day in and day out on their keypads, to gain a little boost to their egos every once in a while. What once was an indulgence for solely the owners of Blackberry smartphones has been made available to all. So what! It is just another app now. We still have our real lives placed well ahead of our virtual ones. Here are 5 things that should excite people more than getting a BBM pin to chat through right now. And trust me; these are pretty cool and more enriching than pinging your buddies all day.
Getting a voter’s ID. I know, your BBM pins are sort of your birth right to text, and the emoticons are super cute to look at (I have been a Blackberry user myself), but as much as getting a BBM pin right now seems important, so is acquiring a voter’s ID. To many the 2014 elections are going to be the first, and exercising your rights in order to shape up the government seems much better than shaping up your social media image at the moment.
Filing an RTI. And then cribbing about the information you gain, with dignity. We know. We know your BBM pin spells awesome and convenience. We also know that your display pictures portray you as nothing short of a star. And, surprise, we also know you use your BBM status to update qualms about every second thing in your life every single hour. But did you know that rather than using your BBM profile to voice your views, you can file an RTI and find out about the makings of the government, hence gain a fair chance and knowledge to study the loopholes in the functioning of your country, and then criticize every second thing in the country in a justified manner? Yes. Even on BBM.
Watching “Shahid”. So we have movies which cross the 100 crore benchmark. Geez, the money these people make — it’s almost an obscene amount. Granted there is a lot of entertainment going on in your contact list at the moment that absolutely, utterly cannot wait, but you should definitely watch a film that tears your hearts apart rather than your pockets. I suggest you put your phones away for a second and make an effort to watch this movie by Hansal Mehta and Anurag Kashyap, called “Shahid”. It will touch your heart without you touching the keypad. Even once.
Because getting out of the closet just went royal in India. We Indians don’t know how to do it without doing it large. Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil is the first India royal ever to come out of the closet. His journey and contribution for gay rights activism is sure to inspire you. What better a way to state an example? There. Here’s how we celebrate harmony. By accepting everyone with open arms, and not just by accepting their BBM requests.
Witnessing a rocket launch to Mars by ISRO. You don’t have to buy a Blackberry phone to use the Blackberry messenger. You are getting the indulgence, literally for free. As much as the ecstasy is driving you over the moon, you must feel even more thrilled for a rocket launch by the Indian Space Research Organization that is planning a rocket launch to Mars in the second half of 2013. Hello Martians! This will be out first mission to Mars. You see, science is not only limited to the beauty of instant messenger apps. It transcends to magical things called the universe and celestial bodies, too. Amazing, don’t you agree?
While we keep going gaga over what a miracle Blackberry Messenger is, there are many things left in the world we ought to be enjoying. I would rather behold a more actual world than be drowned within this quick sand of social media that doesn’t allow you to come up, once you step in. As much as the world has come within our reach, a basic sense of quest, qualitative lifestyle and humanity has gone out of our reach. It’s time we invest our resources into much more worthwhile examples, rather than turn into zombies who work only on the number of “pings” their phones make per day.