By Ratna Manucha
Not popular, not father or dad, and definitely not population. That’s not what POP means, at least not in my lingo.
Let me explain. You know those folks who waste no chance to take pictures and quick as a wink, upload them on social media? The ‘Photo Op People’ or POP. Just in case you decide to check out this phrase on Google, in all probability you won’t find it, cause it’s a freshly coined word by moi, yours truly. And before I go any further, I have a confession to make – I am one such person. When folks get FOMO due to the pictures I upload on my social media handles, I’m happy as a clam.
Okay then – my secret’s out. For starters, my holidays are planned according to how photo worthy the locations are. Once there, I waste no time in taking dozens of pictures and then uploading them on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Threads…whatever. To the uninitiated, it would seem that I was travelling for the sole purpose of taking and uploading pictures (I believe there is a name for such folks now – influencers). But no, I’m not one of them. Remember FOMO? That’s my aim – always and every time.
There’s lots to be done before the actual vacation begins. Clothes to be bought, the skimpier the better, along with matching accessories and sometimes even bags and footwear (often I even end up paying for extra baggage…imagine!). The days of travelling light are passe…and hot footing it to exotic locales is now a serious business. When I’m on holiday, I mean business. It’s work, all the way. Photos need to be taken, then uploaded with all relevant information and extra to boot and, later, the phone has to be checked for remarks and comments…work, work and more work!
Boss Man needs to be cajoled, coerced, persuaded, wheedled and sometimes even bribed to pretend to be in the throes of passion in our holiday photos and videos…smooch, hug, gyrate…all this in our silver years. Why now, you may wonder. The answer my friend, is blowing in the wind – the socials – the gram, the book ad infinitum!
Humare zamane mein yeh sab kahan tha? Mazaa toh ab aa raha hai! Kasam se!
I can almost hear you say, ‘Get a room, folks’, but that’s not the same thing, is it? Privacy is passe. The green-eyed monster will only rear its ugly head when one travels to intriguing faraway lands and puts up dozens of photos on social media. Then and only then will friends and acquaintances scratch their heads and wonder, ‘If they can, why can’t we?’ So starts the rat race to travel to those Sylvan destinations and hope to revive their long-lost romantic ardor. If only they knew the truth! It takes two to tango and it sure as hell is hard work to get the bitter – better half to tango among the hills and vales, or in the midst of squelchy rice fields, trying hard to ignore the mosquitoes buzzing over his balding head and my rapidly thinning hair, while some stranger clicks away with abandon.
But before that, I actually take dance lessons and learn to smile, not scowl at the lens and also check out which of my profiles looks better on camera – the left or the right? Maybe someone can teach me to shelve the prude in me and look straight into the camera in my new skimpy attire, while cavorting in tea gardens, all the while keeping my fingers crossed so I don’t encounter any snakes on my path.
Apart from my pictures, I enjoy taking shots of food on my plate, adding suitable filters simply so I can upload them and later read the drool worthy comments. In fact, let me tell you a little secret. Sometimes I order exotic looking food just so it looks good in the photos…no matter if the food tastes like s–t and I have to toss it in the bin. One can always grab a sandwich on one’s way out. The purpose has been solved. Come nightfall and I get busy checking the number of likes and shares and only when I have read a few comments do I sigh in relief and allow myself to catch a few winks before planning on a new day and new pics.
In fact, just the other day a dear friend asked me why I sent her thirty odd photos with extensive write ups about each picture, each historical place, each heritage site from my latest trip. She didn’t seem impressed. All this after the pain I took to describe each picture in detail (of course, I cut, copied and pasted from the fliers that are available a dime a dozen at all airports and tourist spots, but to be fair, I did type and typing takes time).
Then after seeing the disappointed look on my face, she softened her stance and said, ‘Actually one, just one or maybe two pictures would be nice. That’s it! No more.’
But someone beat me at my own game. Just the other day after attending the prayer meet of a friend’s wife, all the course-mates gathered around the grieving widower for a group photo, if you please. If you think I take the cake, this walked away with the cherry on top and the entire bakery.
The POP culture is seriously here to stay.
(Ratna Manucha is an academician, poet, columnist and author of fact and fiction. She lives, dreams and writes in Dehradun, her happy place).
