It's virtually anytime meet-up in the gizmo world

Distance has little meaning in the adda these days. People don’t have to be neighbours to hang-out. A gadget will do to keep the adda tradition going, muses Shruthi Rao.

Addas fulfil our social needs and give us a feeling of belonging, and of course, scratches the irresistible itch we have for social networking! Little wonder then, that Indians have taken so well to online social networking, and have become such enthusiastic users. It fulfils our obsessive need to know every little detail about our neighbour, her grandpa, and the corn on his foot. And social networking sites provide us with all this, and an inexhaustible wealth of seemingly useless information that we are so thirsty for...

We Indians love a good, long chat. Whether we meet at a get-together, or bump into somebody in the market, or whether we gather for the sole purpose of having a conversation, we love to talk – it animates us like few other things can. Two people are quite enough to start a prolonged, leisurely conversation. But, as in so many things Indian, the general idea is - the more people, the merrier. Throw in a beverage and some eats, and it’s even better! If this meet-chat-eat is a regular affair, there’s nothing like it! Little wonder then, that the friendly neighbourhood adda is such an essential part of our social lives.

In semi-urban and rural India, people gather around the aralikatte/somarikatte/chaupal (a raised platform under a tree like the peepul or banyan, where people congregate to talk.) In urban areas, parks and coffeehouses have long played host to these sessions. What goes on at these sessions? Never-ending discussions, intellectual debates, gossip sessions, sometimes all of these rolled into one. The conversation drifts from one topic to another – and tend to reflect the “mood” of the current society or generation. Opinions are formed and crystallized through this exchange of ideas. In a sense, the attitudes and ideas that prevail in a society are reflected in these conversations, and conversely, originate from these discussions. 

Adda gone virtual

With people spending more and more time online, it was inevitable that addas too went virtual. We now have a 24x7 adda, and people from all over the world can be a part of it! Vasuki Raghavan, a techie, vouches for the online adda as an improvement over the traditional adda. He frequently posts on Facebook about something that is going on in his mind – a social issue, for example, and in a couple of hours, he gets perspectives about it from a variety of people from all over the world.

If he needs advice on which gadget to buy, he posts his question online, and gets valuable suggestions immediately, which makes decision-making easy. He says, “The advantage of Facebook as an adda is that the old-time addas are local, and you might not find like-minded people all the time. Here, the whole world can participate, and benefit from the conversations of strangers. Also, in a discussion, you can offer real-time data in the form of weblinks to back your arguments, which is something you cannot do in the usual adda.”

This extension of the adda to include people from all over the globe is a decided advantage. It might not be a closely-knit, intimate group any longer, but you don’t hear many people complaining. The added advantage to things going online, is that a person’s physical presence is no longer necessary for socializing. This is a blessing in times of frequent travel – where you don’t miss out on your regular dose of adda, just because you are travelling. Besides, work and education take people to other sides of the globe, and yet, they can stay in touch with their old friends as if nothing has changed!

Online addas are quite the boon for women in a society which still isn’t too kind or safe for them. Traditional adda options were nonexistent for women. While men met at any time of the day (or night) and sat on roadside culverts and street corners, women had to depend on congregations at the village well, or snatched conversations over the compound with the neighbour for their daily dose of adda.

Women’s relief

Though young urban addas have more and more women participating, there is still a long way to go for women who need to untangle themselves from housework, child-rearing, and the expectations of society if they want to be a part of a regular adda. This is where online social networking comes into the picture. The woman can participate in discussions online, stay in touch with friends, and be intellectually stimulated and socially fulfilled even in the midst of a hectic day, thanks to social networking.  It is benefiting elderly people and those with limited mobility too. They can be involved with the entire world right from the comfort of their homes.

Though the warmth of a personal meeting is definitely better, it is not always possible in these times when it is so hard to navigate unfriendly pavements and unconcerned traffic to travel to meet people.

In fact, technology is invading the regular adda too. Kailash Koushik, a student of communication, who says his horizons have expanded due to the hours and hours of discussions at the addas in his college, observes that the boundaries between regular physical addas and online addas are becoming fuzzier.  “Increasingly, we are using the internet as the starting point of conversations. Someone mentions a link or a picture that was shared on some social media site, and the conversation flows from there. Also, though we are all hanging out together physically, we are all fiddling with our smartphones, and having virtual conversations with someone else.”

True, an e-adda cannot hold a torch to the regular adda, with its personal touch and face-to-face discussions over a cup of coffee. But with lives and lifestyles changing so quickly, it is inevitable that the character of familiar forms like the addas change too. In a world where individual lives are becoming increasingly isolated and disconnected, online addas are places where people can still feel connected to the community, and feel that sense of community and participation that is so essential to humans.