Has technology taken over our lives this lockdown?
Imagine this lockdown without your smartphones, tablets and laptops. Difficult, right? Technology has certainly come to our aid in this crisis, but it has a flip side, too — extreme dependency on it. As we observe National Technology Day in India, we ask celebs about our obsession with technology and actor Manoj Bajpayee, who is quarantining in Uttarakhand, says it would have been better if there were no phones. “Sometimes we should knowingly take a break from the digital world, and focus on ourselves,” he opines.
On the other hand, Pooja Hegde, 29, who’s with her parents during lockdown “can’t even imagine” life without her gadgets. “So much of our time is spent online. I’m with my trainer on video call every day. But, this crisis has taught me that there are very few basic necessities and we can live without a lot of other things,” she says.
Maniesh Paul says though technology is helping us in this phase, there are a lot of other things we should be doing. “Smartphones are important for those who are away from family. There’s no harm in using gadgets, but if you have other things to do, do that.”
Though Karan
Wahi agrees that gadgets are keeping us sane, he says he can do without them if need be. “I would have survived. Being a ’90s kid, I’ve seen that phase of having no phone.”
There are some who miss the old times, when everyone focused on people rather than mobile screens. Sonu Sood says, “Earlier, we’d sit and have lunch together in the same room. Now, every 5-10 minutes, people want to check their phones. That’s sad.”