KT’s ‘pen friends’ over the years
Letter writers are some of our favourite people. Some of them have been writing to Khaleej Times since the very first edition, and others are mere teens who rediscovered the print medium. Whatever their age, they’re all keen about issues and progress, cap
ONE OF KT’S EARLIEST LETTER WRITERS
It was a newspaper delivery boy who motivated Ramesh Menon, a Khaleej Times subscriber and letter writer, to keep penning for over 15 years.
“The world has become digital now and even when I read all the news online before the print version reaches me in the morning, I continue to be a subscriber because of KT’s dedicated newspaper boy,” Menon says.
“He is a gem of a person and has not missed delivering the paper for a single day, and is always on time,” he adds.
Ramesh has been a KT subscriber from way back. “I came to the UAE in 1988 and since then I have been following Khaleej
Times,” he says. He initially began writing on social and community issues in KT, but does not remember the first letter he wrote to the paper. Ramesh has also been blogging his letters and methodically archiving them since 2009. “I am mostly interested in community issues and sports matters, among others,” he noted.
KT provided him a platform in the early days when there was none available in the UAE. “I used to write and raise issues regarding road safety, accidents caused by fogs, children’s issues, school fees problems… KT always published them.”
Ramesh does, however, miss ‘Open Space’, a space dedicated to readers’ issues. “I would like to request the editors to bring that back. I used to share a lot of my writings and pictures as well,” added Ramesh, who works for an Abu Dhabi-based oil company as a communications expert.
Ramesh has not been keeping hard copies of the letters he has been writing. “This is due to a lack of space, so I have to dispose of print copies. Besides, everything is digital now.”
THE CIVIC CAMPAIGNER
M. A. Mannan penned his first letter to
Khaleej Times at least 15 years ago. Being passionate about the issues around him was what made him write.
“Khaleej Times is a big name and that is why I thought I would write and make my voice heard,” he said.
Though he doesn’t clearly recall what his first letter was about, Mannan, a Bangladeshi and a loyal KT subscriber from Abu Dhabi for over 15 years, says that it was over some civic matter. “I think I wrote about facilities and cleanliness in an Al Ain mosque, and then also about the lack of mosques in Abu Dhabi,” he said.
He hasn’t stopped penning his thoughts to KT over the years. “I want to write daily, but I’m unable to write regularly,” he says.
“But whenever I see something that I strongly feel about, I make sure to pen my thoughts.”
He also said that KT always published his thoughts. Mannan, who has been in the UAE for over 22 years, says that he has kept a collection of all his letters published in KT. “I also share the printed letters on my Facebook page and have hard copies of letters printed over the past 10 years,” he explains.
A trainer in a driving company, Mannan adds that he particularly follows crime reports published in KT. “I read all the stories but crime top my list,” he said, adding that he will continue reading KT and writing to the paper as long as he is in the UAE.
WRITING FOR PROGRESS
Sreekumar Nair says Khaleej Times gave him lots of information whenever he needed it, and the UAE gave him reasons to be happy.
A regular subscriber of KT for the past 15 years, Nair says that while he got his daily news quota from Khaleej Times, it was in the UAE that he had a baby girl, after eight years of trying for a child. “If I see any incident that touches me, I write a letter,” he says, noting that the UAE has a strong administrative and organisational structure.
“So whenever I see an issue that touches my heart, I pick up the pen,” he adds. The Indian national says there are three key issues that he wants the government to take notice of, which is why he keeps writing regularly on them. “I keep writing on the opening of Al Mamzar Bridge, secondly to increase parking spaces at Dubai Airport, and third, on extending the Metro to Sharjah so more people are benefited,” he says.
“There is no progress on these matters yet, so I will continue writing,” he adds.
Nair, who moved to the UAE in 1992, plans to move back to India next year. “But I would like to thank the UAE for all that it has given to me as well as Khaleej
Times, that has not missed a day of print.”
While he does not keep hard copies of the paper, he makes sure to take photos of what has been printed, to share them with others back home.
It was also after moving to the UAE that he and his wife realised a long-held dream. “We had been trying for a baby for years, but were unsuccessful. But soon after we moved to the UAE, we had a baby girl,” he says. Their now grown-up daughter is an engineer, married and has a son of her own.
THE TEEN WHO PREFERS PRINT
Ananya Nair, a 14-year-old Young Times reader, says Khaleej Times is amazing. “I expect to see a gazillion more creative ways, to involve the people and the delivery of information in the most unique and creative ways in future,” says the student from Al Diyafah High School.
The teen still loves the print, while most youngsters her age prefer digital platforms. “I am a person who loves to relax in the balcony, with a piping hot cup of coffee and a crispy newspaper in hand, enjoying the sunrise. It’s a totally different experience when you feel the paper in hand, instead of poking at a screen. To me, the aroma of paper is so much better than the harmful blue light emitted from the screen,” she says.
Her first letter to KT included an article she wrote about volunteering. A school visit to the Khaleej Times offices inspired me to write it.” Ananya prefers writing short poems or stories. “I am quite fond of descriptive writing too,” she adds.
Writing, she says, lets her express feelings. “For instance, after an argument with my mom, I would scribble a poem about her and try to make it as funny and light as possible. But usually, I write to exercise my vocabulary and let my creative juices flow.”
THE STUDENT WRITER
Balasundari Ganesh’s first letter to KT came with the relaunch of Young Times. Although Khaleej Times offers a lot of material, she would like to see more technology development.
“In today’s day and age, technology is literally everything. Although KT is quite quick on giving their readers the latest updates, there are certain incidents which have to be told the moment they occur, like natural disasters or anything which can gravely affect the public sentiment,” she opines. “It might be a long shot, but in the coming decades, instead of giving out newspapers, tablets with news updated regularly can be given out. Obviously, the readers aren’t going to get a new tablet every day. It would work in a way where the tablet can be purchased along with the yearly subscription.”
Yet, the GEMS Wellington Academy student still prefers the print medium. “This might sound weird but I like to hear the sound of pages flipping and get all of my information from a big paper. “News websites these days aren’t really the best to navigate. Some sites have really bad layouts or do not have enough information on certain topics. In my opinion, it’s easier to compare news between print mediums rather than online platforms,” she says.
“I’ll write for anything which enrages me. Being a junior in high school isn’t all that easy and I write letters to release my frustration and to get a digital detox. “I currently take online classes on my laptop and/or my phone. Since my daily life is highly technology-centric, writing in my journal is a real refresher.”
Khaleej Times is a big name and that is why I thought I would write and make my voice heard through my letters to the editor.” M.A. Mannan, letter writer