To Instagram, or not to Instagram, that is the question.
“The dessert looks good but is it Instagram-able?”
“My feed is flooded with Deepavali pictures; am I sticking out by not sharing mine?”
“Am I being obtuse by not raising my voice against this highly relevant social issue when everyone has put up a story about it?”
If you’re familiar with any social media, these questions may have resonated with you. I’m one of the millennials, broadly categorised as a social media-obsessed and attention-craving species, always choosing instant gratification over long-term benefits.
Social media has touched every aspect of our lives, from socialising to social issues to shopping. The beauty and terror of social media lie in the fact that every Tom, Dick and Harry can have an account and hence, a voice. We may live in democracies, tyrannies or fascist-nations-disguised-as-democracies, but almost none of us is exempt from the hyper-democracy that is social media. As a citizen of the Divisive States of Instagram, you know that there is a vote on everything, from deeply divisive political issues to whether you indeed look cute in your new crop top.
Increasingly, and rather alarmingly, social media is being used to judge competitions. It is only a matter of time before we do away with expert opinions, and perhaps, one day, even the Oscars or the Man Booker Prize may switch to such innovative and ridiculous judging.
I’ve struggled with the overwhelming amount of irrelevant information I receive through my feed, I’ve fumed at unapologetically outrageous opinion posts, but I need to acknowledge that sometimes, it has introduced me to new ideas, wholesome news from across the world, hilarious memes and what’s better, book recommendations! I’ve also had difficulty establishing my relationship with social media in a way that it least affects my mental health. The underlying issue is the idea of ‘likes’. Since you clearly know who has liked what or how many people like your new house plant (ridiculous as it may sound), it becomes tricky to separate the intrinsic worth of something from how liked or shared it is on Instagram. Your self-worth certainly does not and cannot depend on social media validation or the number of followers you have.
Grim reality
While social media interaction may be engrossing, it is easy to forget that your followers will not rush to your rescue any given day (except a handful you can rely on). This again brings the focus back to real life and the importance of engaging with the person in front of you, at a café, in transit and even in your own home. There is little to match the magic and non-toxicity of real life, despite the complications.
Instagram may be the unnecessary evil of modern times but we all chose our poison and if it prevents FOMO (fear of missing out), maybe, non-copious amounts of it will not result in the death of my self-worth and authenticity.
divyavenkattu@gmail.com
