People often fell in love and out of love in that land called Orkut. Some of them spent virtually every waking moment there. All this was of course a few years back. Then, a flashier world appeared, and that old land was forgotten.
The migration was swift and almost cruel. The land now wore a deserted look. Former citizens occasionally came visiting, just to see if something was stirring. Nothing ever stirred there anymore. It just was not happening. From September 30, 2014, the land is going to be no more.
Orkut was for most Indians the first social networking experience. There were others like Myspace before Orkut. But Orkut captured the Indian imagination. It was popular in Brazil too. It was so popular in Brazil that Orkut was brought under Google Brazil. Why it was loved only by Brazilians and Indians is a mystery as strange as any.
What do Brazilians and Indians have in common? They love their soccer. We love our cricket. So it was definitely not a shared interest. Perhaps corruption, which is rampant in both countries, was a common factor. Both are emerging nations. But what does that have to do with the social networking experience? It was indeed a mystery.
Orkut managed to get itself banned in Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Orkut never caught on in the United States, which perhaps explains the eventual downfall.
The irony is not to be missed, though. There used to be search engines before Google. Anyone remember Alta Vista? Yahoo was popular even 10 years back. Google mowed down everything in its sight. But with Orkut, Google failed.
Will an even more dazzling world appear? Will Facebook be abandoned too? Though it does not appear likely as of now, a growing disenchantment with Facebook may be a sign.
Some of us were in college when Orkut was popular. Some were in school. For me, Orkut reminds me of early mornings outside the hostel having a cup of hot chai after an entire night of 'Orkut-ing'.
Let us raise a toast to that old land which we loved.
You can download your profile till September 30.
