The Blue Whale Blight
The Blue Whale Blight
That bell, which used to ring in the
afternoon, was our call for freedom. Packing those books and pens in a jiffy we
used to rush home, only to change that uniform and run to the playground. Those
beautiful and blissful moments of laughter and joy was that source of oxygen
that made us survive the daily compulsions of securing a bright future or as
our society terms it: ‘education’! We used to return home sweating like pigs
and study till dinner. Of course we did have all those tiring lessons of co
curricular activities and how can I forget those unnecessary tuitions for
securing marvelous scores. Yes we did have competition among ourselves, but
above all these, we were friends. We made a little world of delight out of a
messy pile of despair, fear and pressure from our parents. So what suddenly
happened in these 5years that we cringe at the sight of our next generations?
We grew up. It was a long time, for our
parents’ of course! But for us it was like an adrenaline rush on a roller
coaster. When we feel too low those memories of school and tuitions make us
smile. This distance from the light of a lantern to the internet was a plodding
one. But we managed to get accustomed to that journey and now we are fighting
real life problems like adults. Problems are common in everybody’s lives, but
depression? Not so normal is it? Now let me clear something out. Depression is
not ‘just’ unhappiness or loneliness; it’s much more enormous in shape and doesn’t
really have visible symptoms on the body like rashes or any marks. It happens
inside that person only. Maybe the ignorance of the society, the sudden switch
to a fast pace life has turned us into mere robots who work according to
schedules. Nobody talks to each other because that time is reserved for posting
a comment on the social media or clicking a selfie. We have dispersed so much
from the human correlation that we can only muster up enough courage to speak
behind our computer screens. So if we have become so mechanized, we probably
can’t imagine life is turning out for our future generation.
The urge to be popular, that insane eagerness for attention is ruining their mental stability. And as we know, every technological invention has its dark side. Along with providing connection with friends, some famous social media platforms have increased the pressure on kids to prove themselves worthy of the society and that too, not by becoming a good human but by counting how many followers they can have. Likes have occupied genuine compliments. And as I scribble these massive lectures, in that corner of, my mind thoughts come and go, whether my profile picture got enough likes. In the midst of these, all you have probably heard about this infamous ‘blue whale game’. (If not, I give you my regards Mr. Flintstone) So this game was invented by a Russian psychology student who stressed on the fact that he was simply weeding out the weaklings of the society to avoid the spread of negative thoughts.
The game gives you 30 deadly tasks which are insane enough and includes self harm and the last task is jumping off a building. It sounds crazy, I know. But let me give you the reality now. Reports of suicides (mostly by school students, teenagers) are being reported all over the world even in India. Quite recently a Delhi boy committed suicide and the police found out that he had been completing these tasks. But is the game really to blame? Doesn’t the society and the forlorn youth play equal role in that? If they can’t find out life in life itself how are we expecting them to survive in a world that is just waiting to tear them apart? This game has brought up a terrible social issue in front of us which we are trying to ignore by blaming the weak and sensitive nature of some kids. Posts are being circulated, Lectures and debates are being organized, but these talks are limited to that podium only.
How many people suffering from such mental trauma opens up? And who will they open up to? Our brisk lives have taken us apart from each other. We have to gear up and earn for a secured future but at this cost! Maybe this game was just an omen for the terrible things yet to come, or maybe it was an example of subtle extermination of emotions and encouraging the manufacture of perfect and impassive humans running in the rat race for power and money.
The urge to be popular, that insane eagerness for attention is ruining their mental stability. And as we know, every technological invention has its dark side. Along with providing connection with friends, some famous social media platforms have increased the pressure on kids to prove themselves worthy of the society and that too, not by becoming a good human but by counting how many followers they can have. Likes have occupied genuine compliments. And as I scribble these massive lectures, in that corner of, my mind thoughts come and go, whether my profile picture got enough likes. In the midst of these, all you have probably heard about this infamous ‘blue whale game’. (If not, I give you my regards Mr. Flintstone) So this game was invented by a Russian psychology student who stressed on the fact that he was simply weeding out the weaklings of the society to avoid the spread of negative thoughts.
The game gives you 30 deadly tasks which are insane enough and includes self harm and the last task is jumping off a building. It sounds crazy, I know. But let me give you the reality now. Reports of suicides (mostly by school students, teenagers) are being reported all over the world even in India. Quite recently a Delhi boy committed suicide and the police found out that he had been completing these tasks. But is the game really to blame? Doesn’t the society and the forlorn youth play equal role in that? If they can’t find out life in life itself how are we expecting them to survive in a world that is just waiting to tear them apart? This game has brought up a terrible social issue in front of us which we are trying to ignore by blaming the weak and sensitive nature of some kids. Posts are being circulated, Lectures and debates are being organized, but these talks are limited to that podium only.
How many people suffering from such mental trauma opens up? And who will they open up to? Our brisk lives have taken us apart from each other. We have to gear up and earn for a secured future but at this cost! Maybe this game was just an omen for the terrible things yet to come, or maybe it was an example of subtle extermination of emotions and encouraging the manufacture of perfect and impassive humans running in the rat race for power and money.
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