SwamyVerse: media

9 Oct 2015

2KYOT C24 Fame K231

"In the future everybody will be famous for fifteen minutes!" Andy Warhol is said to have famously told in 1979. His was a time when you've to be talented to perform something noteworthy & lucky enough to be noticed by someone worthy, who would promote you to an audience, so you could become rich & famous and the promoter could become richer (s/he won't promote just you, naturally).

Warhol was right in predicting that as a future event, as there wasn't much of media, other than print & radio, to propagate someone's fame, at that time. Even if someone's talented, s/he needs the media for fanning that 15 minutes of fame. So gaining fame at Warhol's time took time. But things were about to change dramatically soon.

CNN started 24x7 news transmission in 1980. Larry King's interviews went live in 1985. www wasn't born until 1991. Big G (ahem, not that long bearded fella in flowing white robes believed to be up in the air, but Google) started its endless searches in 1998. Facebook made everyone like anyone in 2004. Any human being with a camera that can capture motion picture could beam himself or her cat & dog to the world thanks to YouTube from 2005. The little blue bird that can digest only 140 characters per bite, err tweet, started flapping its wings in 2006. Photographs changed forever from rectangle to square, thanks to Instagram, in 2010. And so on and on and on...

The explosion of social media & on demand availability of bandwidth gave an opportunity for every Tom, Sheikh & Harini to go for their 15 seconds of fame (inflation adjusted ;), right from their couch or car or anywhere. And having read or heard about a million self-help books from thousands of motivational authors, the minions of this tiny planet took Warhol's words to the heart and decided to become famous, come what may. Wouldn't it be really interesting to know what Valluvar said about Fame 2000 years ago!

231 ஈதல் இசைபட வாழ்தல் அதுவல்லது
ஊதியம் இல்லை உயிர்க்கு.

There isn't any better purpose in Life than offering something (to others) and cherishing the accolade (or fame) that follows.

Hmmm, is it any wonder that fame is still hard to find for many, despite the myriad ways available now for anyone keen? Before you crave for that 15 seconds (or minutes) of fame and despair when it eludes, as ever, take a moment to think what have you got to offer that your fellow humans may find valuable!

@PrakashSwamy

Note: This post is part of Swamy's blog series on the epic book of Tamil poetry Thirukkural, thought to be written over 2000 years ago by the poet ThiruValluvar, in an enchanting Tweet long couplet format, which is amazingly relevant even in the digital space of today!
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Be Joyful & Spread the Cheer :)

8 Oct 2015

2KYOT C12 Objectivity K119

Talvar has stirred the collective imagination of a nation about the subjectivity of law enforcement agencies and everyone who is someone - including those who haven't even seen the movie yet - is expressing their shock & dismay at how the system simply failed to offer justice to the parents - both educated professionals belonging to the higher strata of society - who stand accused of killing their child. Of course, it's the same bunch of gossip gluttons that has indulged in devouring the media's nine course spicy subjective meal on another filicide, served 24x7, only a few weeks ago.

To understand the irony of our contradictory existence, we need to look at what Valluvar told about objectivity over 2 millennia ago.

119 சொற்கோட்டம் இல்லது செப்பம் ஒருதலையா
உட்கோட்டம் இன்மை பெறின்.

When your mind isn't subjective, your words (& deeds) too won't be (subjective).

Unlike the industrial age supervisors & knowledge era managers who suddenly wake up from their subjective waking slumber and instinctively switch the objectivity light on, to play the practiced role of dispeller of darkness during the evil annual rituals called appraisal & promotion, when nice things like hope & motivation (of their minion subordinates) usually run away scared, the rest of humanity apparently learned to live comfortably in the subjective darkness, forever.

Pretty much every member of this hilarious species that appears to be devolving now, after evolving over millions of years from apes (who thankfully stopped evolving & continue to live happily with one less sense), shamelessly remain staunchly subjective in pretty much every single action concerning their own success, growth, wealth & popularity, but wax eloquent about the need to remain objective, in whatever one says or does, without batting an eyelid. Thanks to #Thiruvalluvar, we know why!

@PrakashSwamy

Note: This post (Kural #119, Chapter 12) is part of Swamy's blog series on the epic book of Tamil poetry Thirukkural, thought to be written over 2000 years ago by the poet ThiruValluvar, in an enchanting Tweet long couplet format, which is amazingly relevant even in the digital space of today!

Be Joyful & Spread the Cheer :)