Gurgaon Rapid Metro Riders And Their Phones
Most people that I see are carrying their eyeballs in their hands, tightly clenched in a fist.
Humans, everywhere, don’t know if we are consciously thinking about our existence or just rambling around, blank. Most people that I see are carrying their eyeballs in their hands, tightly clenched in a fist. And they punch that fist in everything that sounds interesting, sports, TV series, funny videos, news-feed, gaming, and countless digital adventures.
Here, weeks start with Monday. It’s an old concept and I guess no one is bothered enough to rethink this system. Also, if something lasted for this long, it must be working for the majority. But the reality is astounding and different, and it seems that many do not agree with the idea of starting a week with Monday. “Monday hits you hard”, really? I don’t think so. Well, it has almost become a trend to talk against Monday and to talk against a trend is another trend in itself. The contrarian approach is widely spread, we do not label ourselves “contrarian” when we speak against a trend. We do it without knowing it, out of reflex and out of another trend “look! I’m cool”.
The other day, I was traveling in the Gurgaon metro, going home from the office after a 9-hour thing. Just like every other working day. I’m standing next to the door, the door that is opposite to the one that will open. All I do in the metro is to observe people. Because I’m too afraid to commit to a new Netflix series. I’m afraid that it won’t live up to my expectations. And I’m also afraid of not understanding most of it. But everyone around me in the metro is brave. More than 50% of the passengers are brave and they are committing to watching Netflix series on their phones with earphones plugged in. Sometimes I feel tempted to ask for their recommendation. But then they leave at the next station. It is too hard to hold on to anything in this fast-paced in-the-middle-of-a-transition world.
Not everyone is watching Netflix, some are on YouTube or Amazon Prime Video or Hotstar or some other online video streaming service that might be pitching to a VC somewhere in the same city with a slide that says “Our Competitive Advantage”. But I see what’s everyone’s competitive advantage. Your competitive advantage is someone’s poor taste in the content they consume.
Those who are not spending time on any kind of video streaming app are on Twitter or Facebook or Instagram or WhatsApp. On odd days, I also notice people who are just standing, doing nothing, and staring out of the window and then I notice the Air Pods. God! I love Air Pods.
Sometimes I find people aggressively scrolling on-demand food ordering apps. Faster delivery, tasty food, and affordable pricing. Yum!
Right when I forcefully take my mind off their phones and what they are doing with it. I notice myself and it is so frustrating to come to the conclusion that I’ve got nothing to do on this 6 Min ride home.
