How did we store memories in the pre-Instagram era?
A classmate of mine from college shared a story on Facebook yesterday. It was about the celebration of the 175th year of our college, Presidency College (now University), Kolkata, in 1992. He recalled the visit made by the then President, late Shankar Dayal Sharma, to inaugurate the week-long festivities.
Several famous folks visited the college on the occasion. One was a certain Pranab Mukherjee, an alumnus of our college. He later became the President of India. So we got to see two presidents for the price of one that week!
I was awake late into the night last night, remembering my college days. What an exciting time those three years were! My mind went into overdrive. A flashback of instances from different parts of my life followed. School days. Early days in Mumbai. Courting, and then getting married. It felt as if I was sitting in a cinema hall, watching scenes from my past play out on the screen.
What sparks off nostalgia? Is nostalgia a curse or a boon? What about short-term memory and long-term memory? I can tell you about a conversation that I had in 1980 with my cousin during a cab ride from the Calcutta Airport to home. Yet, I often turn the house upside down trying to find my reading glasses. Only to discover that I was wearing them all the while!
They say you should leave the past behind and just focus on the present. Is this even humanly possible?
A lot of research has been done on the subject of memory. Neurological, psychological, metaphysical, etc. Philosophers and scientists have opined on it. Yet, there is so much more to discover I am sure.
On a separate note, do you think that Instagramming every moment of our lives has reduced the hold that nostalgia has on us? Let me explain. Yes, you did have cameras, video and audio cassettes, etc to record things earlier, but using those required far higher involvement than posting Instagram stories and reels. Are we in a rather twisted Black Mirror sort of way, finally living in the ‘present’ thanks to Instagram? Putting an Insta post on what might have just happened and then moving on without holding onto the memory. There could be something there. Perhaps we are not just looking at reduced attention spans? Perhaps memories are becoming more transient too.
Do you too remember things that happened to you vividly? Would love to know.
PS: What does this post have to do with food, you ask? Well, I do remember that the food boxes that we got as volunteers during the 175th contained fish fry, ‘fried rice,’ chicken curry and mishti. I was on two committees. So I got two boxes!
Hope this counts.
