Hey there!

Before starting off, let me tell you that this was a HUGE leap of faith for me. All I wish I could put that ‘huge’, huge enough to put things to perspective! A few hours ago, at the time of making this site public, I was jumping around my room like a 5-year old kid (it would have surely looked amusing!). I was that excited. Let me tell you – I still am, not very clear of what I am going to post, that I only have a rough idea of things to follow. But I always wanted to write in length and share interesting stuff, perhaps meeting interesting people with common interests in the way. Hence, this blog.

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It all begins with me starting to write these little ‘articles’ I made up for myself, back in November 2018, in my hostel room, hiding all I wrote from my roommate (sorry, Varun) and everyone else who simply barged in. I had this tinge of an idea of sharing what I write. I soon discarded it though. At that time, neither was I on Instagram nor did I use Facebook regularly. All I had was YouTube, and I spent hours and hours, exploring new content, wondering how people are so good at expressing themselves. I saw people from all walks of life – engineers, doctors, freelancers; putting out how were they living their lives, basically. It was all too fascinating for me; a breath of fresh air from all the video lectures and tutorials I had been surrounded by for the past couple of years.

I was that boy in my home who marvelled at Sachin Tendulkar and aspired to become like him – only to realise that I was a horrible batsman. So, it was natural for me to secretly aspire to be a vlogger, or something on those lines, after watching these YouTube creators putting out such splendid content. But the lack of equipment and experience with video pushed me to writing as my only resort. I saw this as a way to share my everyday experiences in a new light for people who weren’t living the way I was. Not that my life is very interesting, but I felt like this new college life was way more happening than the (comparatively) mundane life that a class 12th JEE aspirant has.

In this bright sky of newfound optimism, however, there still were greys of doubt such as:

1. Why should I even write!?
2. What would I write?
3. What would I get out of writing all this crap?
4. Would you judge me? (I know you are doing that right now!)

The more time I put into thinking about this, the clearer things started becoming.

Among all the reasons I thought of, these were the most solid ones:

• Remembering things

On the internet, you consume a lot of material. Be it through news, blogs, videos, social media feeds – you basically become an information crunching machine (at least you feel that way, don’t you?). And if I ask you this – if you find something amazing that you would like to tell your friends in person, how many times did you forget it? The answer would most probably disappoint you. (unless you are not one of those average creatures who spends 4 hours a day staring blankly at a five-point-five-inch screen!)

So, as a medium to save all that I see, hear and feel, I needed a place to collect these things together. I had a strong desire to remember and document my life, and this was indeed one of the ways to do so. It is often said that describing is the best way to remember something, so why not?

• Improving writing quality

As I talked about my fondness to write, I decided to give writing a serious shot. Not that I want to pursue a career of some sorts (at this moment!), I just wanted to improve my writing skills. Having an extra set of skills along with your specialisation doesn’t hurt! Writing with some stranger’s eyes on your work could force you to improve the quality manifold. And being an introvert with a doofenshmirtzic personality (yes, I spent time making that up…), the written word is my most reliable tool for communication!

• Developing accountability

I would be sharing some things I am up to, trying to achieve something I didn’t have a long-term motivation for. Sharing it here, on this platform, would make my readers aware that I am pursuing this particular goal. Having this thought would motivate me further to do the thing I have always wished to do, but never have gone past the pain of actually realising it.

• Having a personal space

I have always longed to enjoy my own space on the internet. I could have done all that jazz I am doing right now on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook as well. But, to be frank, I don’t like using social media (more on that later). This space can serve as the quiet nook I had always dreamt of, being the king of my little castle I made with my own hands, sharing stuff only with those who really care to see my stuff. (very punny indeed). I know that there won’t be many people who will follow this blog; but that’s good, in a way… I mean…

• As a ‘passion project’

I stumbled across this video in my YouTube feed, which pointed me to this TED Talk. Shortly afterwards, I stumbled upon this post, leading me to this book. This really made me think hard – for weeks, in fact. Why was I doing the things I was doing? What if I longed to do something, but failed to do because there wasn’t any time left? I have had run into such situations, far too many times, and this time really didn’t want to miss out on doing something like that. I mean, why not give it a shot, while you can!? It’s winter vacations, after all, and I think this is a better use of my time than morbidly swiping my thumb up my Instagram feed, with TV playing that little bit of something-something in the background, to ward off signs of potential loneliness.

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So yeah, there’s that. These were my reasons why I decided to come out of my closet. Probably you resonate with me at some points, and that’s why I encourage you to make your personal space as well. I mean, it’s fun so far. You should try it once! Make sure to share me the link of your online residence, lest you decide to make one! I’d love to hear from you, be it in the comments (we’d have a good discussion in the comments!) or perhaps in a more private space. Let me know if you want to see a part of this post in detail, as a separate post, in the future.

Till then,
Breathe!