Posts in category: Experiences

A few days ago, I was heading to my regular book-reading corner with my earphones on after finishing my day. I had a long day, and reading time was the only thing I was looking for. That’s when I was interrupted by some family discussion (one of the cons of WFH, you are right there to talk as you leave your work desk). 

Though that was the last thing I wanted to have, I had to do it. Ignoring it can cause more drama than, let alone having it, I finished the discussion and headed to find my book. I picked up the book I was reading and, after 15 minutes, got a call from my best friend. Sometimes, talking to friends gives you the relief you are seeking. I picked up the call, and we started talking. She started a conversation about her boyfriend. I started to roam around as my mom was arranging some clothes in the almirah. 

I climbed upto the terrace, and we talked for almost half an hour. We were interrupted when my mom came there to ask, “Why did I come here?” I simply shrugged, she asked again, and I bombarded, “I need my personal space yaar, why can’t you get it here?”.She snarled, “What you even talking so secretly that have to go in corners and what do you need your space for?”

In the heat of the moment, I told my friend to call later, and I kept that argument on for five minutes. Of course, it never ends on a good note, so I left home for my evening walk instead of completing my book-reading session. I’ve been thinking my whole way, “How is personal space linked to some secret mission only? I feel personal space is mandatory in marriage as well.”

Lost in my mess of thoughts, I circled in the garden with songs playing along in my headphones. I called my bestie again, she picked up the call and started with “Shaant ho gya bheem?” Implies as if I’m calm now. I replied, “Yeah, somewhat”. 

Though she lives in some other town away from her parents, when she comes, the scene is the same at her place as well. We just don’t understand why our parents do that, why do they want to know every detail about whom you are talking to, what you are talking about, and then pass judgements on the whole conversation, if shared? I think each one of us share some conversations with our friends or loved ones about which we simply can’t talk to everyone and that’s not only the conversations with the partner. We spoke at length about why our parents do it and couldn’t find the perfect answer. 

There’s actually no right and wrong answer for this whole situation. I feel the challenge is the place where they come from and the generation that followed our parents. Somehow, there is little to no understanding of “personal space.” They believe you only need personal space with your partner. Which is the fact but you need personal space with your friends as well. 

When I went deep into the thought, I realised they weren’t wrong either because that’s how they lived their life. How else can you give all folks personal space when living in compact 1BHK homes with walls as thin as paper? Of course, it’s been tricky then. Now, our whole concept of personal space seems alien to them! 

Strange, but at such times, with these thoughts, you can’t get angry at your parents, and neither can you give up on your thoughts. You simply sit clueless thinking what can be the middle way from here. At times, you may get it or prefer to leave such conversations on time, as is. 

We’re in 2024. So, it’s been more than a decade of writing. I’ve started my writing journey as a mere poem or story writer, if you could say it. That happened somewhere in 2008-10, which means around 8th or 9th grade. For me, writing was the only option to take my feelings out of my system. What kinda feelings, you ask?

Well, in my childhood, I was a lonesome kid with hardly any friends. Somewhere, I faced difficulty making friends because I was a nerd and not a cool kid, maybe. I had a lot of anger and frustration around my life, family, and inability to make friends, and I placed all that energy on getting good grades. I believed that maybe those grades bring me some people closer, you know, in that typical scenario where all the mothers push their kids to befriend rankers.

But, unfortunately, good grades make you good in the eyes of other parents who want to take your notes to teach their kids. Still, the grades and rankings take you away from your classmates or just near to those who wish to compete. This whole system creates a differentiation, a boundary, a dissection, where someone is better than you and you are higher than someone. I felt that thing; I felt that void, and language became one such medium to bring all that pain, anger, and frustration out on paper. 

I was blessed. Blessed that at least I had pen-paper by my side. Frankly, I didn’t know exactly where and when I started writing. I found one poem on “Friendship” on my letterhead from 5th grade, which dates back to 2005. So, I never knew how many things I wrote in that timeframe till 2011. I used to scribble and write stuff at the back of my notebooks, in the center pages of all my copies, and tear them down as I reached the center of the notebook. I wrote diaries for putting some other stories of aggression but that’s mostly the end of the day things. When words come from your heart and mind to the paper, there is hardly any fixed time for that, so the center of notebooks or last pages are always convenient. That’s been my way of dealing with my feelings and that’s how writing happened to me. 

You Don’t Choose Writing, Writing Choose You 

I never thought I would be a marketing writer or Content Writer. NEVER! Not even a single time such an idea crossed my mind. However, in childhood, I wanted to become a writer someday. My motivation was connected to my revolutionary thoughts and questions. Over time, I’ve learned that people read and accept what influential people say and write. I believe writers are powerful because they write what we read in newspapers, books, magazines, and everything else. But, while growing up, I listened several times to the stories of old songwriters, scriptwriters, and literature writers about the struggles of their lives. The tales I heard described writers who always struggled to gain recognition in society, like Munshi Premchand, Dinkar, and Mahadevi Verma. Becoming a writer took a backseat as the idea of making money through this art was vague. 

But, as I grew up, these thoughts faded. Like every child, I had different ambitions at different stages of life. I wanted to be a pilot till 3rd grade; then, I wanted to be a writer around 6th grade; then I planned to be a doctor around 9th grade; then, I wanted to be an engineer to create robots in 10th grade. I think that’s how my last choice translated to choose maths – science. However, at this stage, I thought of choosing PCMB (I know now how confusing this choice sounds). 

Due credits to my last selection of subjects, I wanted to be an engineer. Maybe, because I was interested in circuits, opening machines, and repairing them as a kid. Lately, I learned from one of the electricians who came to our place that such guys learn these things as engineers. That’s when I discovered that maybe my calling was to be an engineer. 

I studied harder and harder to get into the engineering college of my choice, but ultimately, fate landed me in a private engineering college. That’s where I took my engineering course and learned the engineering of my life. In this journey, I learned about e-commerce, started my e-commerce venture, and did content writing internships. 

Mental satisfaction and money were the drivers that inclined me more towards writing. The learning-while-earning scenario motivated me to explore, read, and write more. I was blessed, and still am, for writing happened to me. 

My Professional Writing Career 

I started my professional writing journey as an intern content writer back in my 3rd year of engineering. It was a crazy ride to land my first internship at Internshala, but I’m glad I chose that path. And, as you know, taking the first step is always the hardest but always worth taking. There was no turning back after that. I did a series of internships, which was fun with a lot of corporate-like stress. 

It helped me land my first job as a junior writer at an IT company via LinkedIn (You may connect with me here). In the meantime, I wore several hats while serving the industry for 8+ years as a Content Marketer. I worked in several domains, namely, IT service providers, VoIP service providers, SaaS-based IT companies, SaaS – e-commerce platforms, SaaS loyalty and customer engagement, healthcare and beauty segments, to name a few. It was only in 2023 that I decided to pay more attention to my e-commerce venture ‘Craftcart’ and start freelancing alongside. 

I still love and admire the power of writing and take Freelance writing projects to quench my thrust of drafting the best marketing assets for businesses. If you have any marketing content requirements where I can add value, share deets with me.