PUNE BLOGS – What and Why

PUNE BLOGS – What and Why

PUNE BLOGGERS MEET

By

VIKRAM KARVE

A Report on the Pune Bloggers Meet held last Saturday (05 May 2012) at Rajlaxmi Hall in Kothrud Pune

Part 2

If you ask me: “What is the most important invention in your lifetime?” I would answer: “The Internet.”

And if you ask me which is that aspect of internet that has affected my life the most, I would answer: “Blogging.”

Yes, Blogging has changed my way of life – for the better. Blogging has given me something to look forward to and like I say “A Blog a Day keeps the Doctor Away”.

What is the meaning of the word BLOG?

BLOG is the short form of the word WEBLOG derived from the combination of the two words: WEB and LOG. A Blog is a virtual diary or an online journal created by an individual in cyberspace on the Internet. A Blog comprises writings and pictures, anything the blogger wants to share, ranging from creative writing to travelogues to food recipes to personal thoughts and experiences, academic papers, news, views and reviews, politics, business and social information, well almost anything and everything. A blog is a vehicle for expression and interactive communication. Over the years the Blogosphere has become a tremendous repository of information and literature and the importance of Blogging will continue to increase in times to come not only as an information bank but also as an influencer of opinion. As a Trainer and Teacher I have used Blogs very effectively to disseminate knowledge and information. Blogs and Blogging are here to stay.

“Why do people Blog?”

Let’s see what some Pune Bloggers had to say.

Whenever Sai Kulkarni was eager to say something to someone, sometimes there was no one willing to listen to what she had to say. So she started writing a Blog – sharing her thoughts and reflections and imparting wisdom and soon she realized that there were so many fellow Bloggers with whom she could share her thoughts.

Yes, if the need to converse is unfulfilled in the real world, Blogging satisfies that need to communicate, albeit in the virtual world, since Blogging is an interactive activity unlike mere writing. And I feel this is the main reason most of us started blogging; because we wanted to say something, and blogging was the medium to express ourselves.

Stephen, a Techie from Mumbai who works in TechMahindra Pune, started writing a blog as an outlet for his creative expression.

Before the advent of the internet and blogging, creative writers were at the mercy of editors and publishers who determined whether your creative work would ever see the light of day. Even technical papers were subjected to a long and arduous process of peer review, which lead to subjectivity and delays and consequent frustration for the authors. A Creative Writer was treated to rejection slips or, worse still, indifference with submissions not even being acknowledged by the powers that be in the editorial offices and the publishing world. It was very exasperating to see your creative efforts being ignored, rejected, and even if your work was finally published the inordinate delay made you lose interest. 

Ismita Tandon Dhanker, a celebrated fiction author who has a bestseller “Love on the Rocks” a romantic thriller already under her belt and a mystery novel “Love Kills” slated for release, writes a wonderful Blog called The Lesser Known Poet – maybe she feels that though fiction is her calling, her true metier lies in poetry and gives vent to her poetic expression via her blog. Her companion, the smart young designer Pavitra told us that, at present, she writes in her brain. We await the day she starts blogging – after all, all of us too wrote in our minds all these years and all this “writing” is now flowing into our blogs.

Animesh K Mishra aka Captain Awesome who was the brain and brawn behind this meetup is a passionate blogger who blogs about everything under the sun, creative and non-creative writing, news and views, and is quite a versatile blogger who believes that bloggers must take a stand on issues rather than just report events (views versus news) and also contribute towards social causes. He tells his stories in pieces and enunciates his views in a very multifaceted blog called Towers and Shadows.

Vineet Rajan, the IndiBiker from IndiBlogger, has a very attractively designed blog and he blogs about a variety of topics, especially travelogues embellished with awesome pictures.

Hari blogs about the heritage on India and we listened with apt attention as he told us how an NRI decided to relocate back to India on reading his blog. His photo-travelogues on his blog Musafir Rendezvous with India are breathtaking

Prasant K rambles in search of truth while Prasant Naidu is a professional blogger – his blog Lighthouse and Insights is a must see.

Diwakar Narayan the ghazal aficionado has a blog called The Infected Mind and a exclusive Ghazal Blog too in which he writes short stories, poems, ghazals and on current affairs. There was a lady blogger who blogs in Hindi. She told us how blogging gave her an identity and recognition.

Interior Designer Pooja Ahuja has an informative blog Why Hire an Interior Designer and we look forward to some innovative interior designs and interesting tips from her.

If you want to see an awesome photoblog have a look at Ketan Pandit’s Blog and if you want to read a lively blog have a look at Hemant Arora’s Blog called Pearls from the Ocean not to forget Amit Singh’s poetry blog and sadly I could not open Saurabh Mukhekar’s and Annirudha’s Blogs.

Trupti has one of the most appealing blogs called Blawghh IT!! – this is a very interesting blog quite unique in its content and design and the picture posts about their travels around Pune and the one on paragliding and gliding are superb.

Sriram seems to be a very serious and profound blogger though his blog is called Coffee and Chess whereas in complete contrast is a simple fun blog by Archana – a  “Slice of Life” Blog called Spice of Life

Sandeep Gautam’s Psychology Blog The Mouse Trap is truly a fantastic well-researched blog whicg affords some serious reading on this intriguing subject.

I am sure you are getting bored reading this “Laundry List” of Pune Blogs (maybe I will continue my humdrum elucidation of the Pune Bloggers Meet in Part 3) but before I end I must mention a Technical Blog I liked very much called Technary which has useful content for Techies as well as Bloggers. I wonder who the authors of  Technary are – I think they were sitting near me and will they please introduce themselves.

I wondered why many blog under pseudonyms (handles) or anonymously and the reasons for this were elucidated by some of the enlightened bloggers.

PS:

Remember we filled in all our information in a book. Will the Captain of the Blogship be so good as to put details of all Pune Blogs and Bloggers on a Blog Post or on the Pune Bloggers Facebook Page – maybe a directory of Pune Bloggers so that the Pune Blogging Community can cement its relationship. To start with let us connect up on IndiBlogger and Twitter.

Have a Great Weekend of Happy Blogging.

VIKRAM KARVE 

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2012
Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.
© vikram karve., all rights reserved.

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About Vikram Karve

A creative person with a zest for life, Vikram Karve is a retired Naval Officer turned full time writer. Educated at IIT Delhi, ITBHU Varanasi, The Lawrence School Lovedale and Bishops School Pune, Vikram has published two books: COCKTAIL a collection of fiction short stories about relationships (2011) and APPETITE FOR A STROLL a book of Foodie Adventures (2008) and is currently working on his novel and a book of vignettes and short fiction. An avid blogger, he has written a number of fiction short stories, creative non-fiction articles on a variety of topics including food, travel, philosophy, academics, technology, management, health, pet parenting, teaching stories and self help in magazines and published a large number of professional research papers in journals and edited in-house journals for many years, before the advent of blogging. Vikram has taught at a University as a Professor for almost 15 years and now teaches as a visiting faculty and devotes most of his time to creative writing. Vikram lives in Pune India with his family and muse - his pet dog Sherry with whom he takes long walks thinking creative thoughts.

Vikram Karve Academic and Creative Writing Journal: http://karvediat.blogspot.com
Professional Profile Vikram Karve: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve
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Email: vikramkarve@sify.com

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