Public display of affection, opulence, success, achievement, progress, promotion, beauty, filial warmth, conjugal affection has overwhelmed the screens of our lives.

We are living our lives on screens nowadays. Social networking is an integral element of our lives. People can choose to stay away from Facebook, Twitter or Instagram but there’s no hiding from Whats App. Whats App has become a social necessity.

On every social platform, a profile picture carries a meaning and conveys a message.  In the ultra-competitive world of profile pictures, a picture with a family member indicates a close bond with family. It speaks a lot about the strength of their relationships. Sharing a photo of your family members on social media makes them feel loved and appreciated. But many a day, we become obligatory Whats App Doodlers.

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Google began paying tributes to individuals by its Doodle. A Google Doodle is a temporary alteration of the logo on the Google’s homepage that is used to commemorate people, festivals, events, etc. It was my brother’s birthday recently. I woke up in the morning to send him a cliched WhatsApp birthday wish, with cliched emojis and emoticons of cakes, flowers, balloons, etc. Before I sent him a message, I proceeded to do the daily ritual of scrolling my contact list to see whether any profile pictures have been changed, before I could brush, eat and pray.

To my surprise my brother’s face appeared in some of the contacts that clearly didn’t belong to him. My sister used his picture as her profile picture (in every social media platform, I learnt later), my cousins used his picture as their profile pictures, my someone used his picture as his profile picture, my no one used his picture in his profile picture.

This meant that everybody loved him and payed their individual tribute as a mark of respect and affection by changing their profile pictures for a day. It’s a personal version of Google Doodle. We are all Whats App Doodlers to some extent. So, I immediately searched for a picture of mine with him, in which I looked good, and changed my profile picture least it gets late and my love for my brother goes unnoticed and I come across as an unemotional dud. Phew!! I guess he was happy. Now it’s his turn to do the same and prove his rakhi love for me on my birthday and set a Doodle for the world to witness, notice, appreciate and say awwww!

About the Author

Dr. Sapna Dogra completed her B.A and M.A. in English Literature from University of Delhi. She holds a PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University and is presently working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of English in Government College Baroh, Himachal Pradesh. She has over ten years of teaching experience. Her research articles, book reviews and translations have been published in reputed journals and magazines. She has also developed school level books. Her research interests include Folklore Studies, Translation Studies, Indian English Writing, Hindi Literature and Popular Literature.  She can be reached at sapnardm@gmail.com.