Twenty-two-year-old Bengaluru-based software engineer Babitha Kumari graduated from college in June. Like most young adults, she saw her core group of friends move cities for jobs. Soon, the familiar faces that crowded her life at university disappeared only to pop up on her phone as texts, DMs, and video calls. Sounds familiar? We live in a time where our online selves seem to be taking over, leaving little to no social interaction with the world outside. But Kumari decided to reconnect with the real world, and signed up for Cubbon Meets—an in-person book club that meets every Saturday at Cubbon Park.
Kumari isn’t alone. World over, small hobbyist groups seem to be slowly but surely popping the virtual bubble. These budding groups are encouraging people to leave their screens behind and engage in IRL activities, be it reading, sculpting, crocheting, metalworks, or board games. The whole point is to meet people and be a part of a community. “I have met some amazing people through Cubbon Meets. For instance, I met someone who seemed to be an older version of me. We spoke about everything under the sun, and it felt good to be heard by someone who just gets you,” Kumari says.
About 8,000 km away, in Amsterdam, 28-year-old business consultant Lakshmanan Ayyappan came across The Offline Club (@theoffline_club) online. Here, people get together for group activities that include reading, knitting, or even playing board games. “My work is mostly online, and sometimes I feel a bit disconnected from people. Since everything is online, I would often wonder what kind of activities I would enjoy. Joining this club came from a curiosity to know more about myself and a desire to form real connections,” shares Ayyappan. Read writer Aisiri Amin's piece on how these shared, off-line spaces are fulfilling our basic human need for community.
|
Twenty-two-year-old Bengaluru-based software engineer Babitha Kumari graduated from college in June. Like most young adults, she saw her core group of friends move cities for jobs. Soon, the familiar faces that crowded her life at university disappeared only to pop up on her phone as texts, DMs, and video calls. Sounds familiar? We live in a time where our online selves seem to be taking over, leaving little to no social interaction with the world outside. But Kumari decided to reconnect with the real world, and signed up for Cubbon Meets—an in-person book club that meets every Saturday at Cubbon Park.
Kumari isn’t alone. World over, small hobbyist groups seem to be slowly but surely popping the virtual bubble. These budding groups are encouraging people to leave their screens behind and engage in IRL activities, be it reading, sculpting, crocheting, metalworks, or board games. The whole point is to meet people and be a part of a community. “I have met some amazing people through Cubbon Meets. For instance, I met someone who seemed to be an older version of me. We spoke about everything under the sun, and it felt good to be heard by someone who just gets you,” Kumari says.
About 8,000 km away, in Amsterdam, 28-year-old business consultant Lakshmanan Ayyappan came across The Offline Club (@theoffline_club) online. Here, people get together for group activities that include reading, knitting, or even playing board games. “My work is mostly online, and sometimes I feel a bit disconnected from people. Since everything is online, I would often wonder what kind of activities I would enjoy. Joining this club came from a curiosity to know more about myself and a desire to form real connections,” shares Ayyappan. Read writer Aisiri Amin's piece on how these shared, off-line spaces are fulfilling our basic human need for community.
|
|
|
|
|
