Author: Aakash Rohilla
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29 Years 1 Week
I’ve been thinking about writing this for a week now. The idea was to publish this on 7th September 2025 (my 29th birthday), but every time I opened WordPress, I starred at the blank screen for 30 mins and then do something else. Mostly laziness. But I blame this new WordPress editor also. The classic editor was better.
On 26th June 2025, I posted a story on my Instagram. A few things I learned in my life and some advice, mostly repackaged from wise people I have had the chance to meet/learn from in my life. Saurabh asked for the link, I sent him the screenshots because it was a note in my Notes app. He said “Blogpost likh de iska.”
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Radiate energy in the right group
In a world where everything from the newest TV show to Marlboro Lights are available to you in a matter mins, how do you delay gratification?
I will be posting an update here every two weeks – things I have learned in last couple of years and how I see the world from my lens. Mostly it’d be a collection of things, my pov, and what I have consumed in the last two weeks.
Starting with a thought that I have been thinking about off late.
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I am afraid
“Need a bed in New Delhi.”
“Need oxygen in Lucknow.”
“Please help, only 45 mins oxygen remaining in hospital.”
“Need plasma in Gurgaon.”
“Need two doses of Remdesivir.”
All I see on social media is people asking for help. Be it Facebook, be it Twitter, be it Instagram, things are in pretty bad shape. The medical infrastructure of our country has collapsed, and I am afraid. Every phone call comes with a truckload of anxiety.
I pray to the power (or God) that if you are there, please make this stop! But it doesn’t work like that. We should have prepared for this. Our elected leaders should have evaluated the situation instead of rallies and declaring on Twitter that we won the COVID-19 war.
“Jis pe guzarti hai, ussi ko pata hai.” (Only those who go through it, knows the pain)
Just found out that Vivek’s mother died. Vivek and I used to live in the same neighborhood. He is probably two-three years older than me. His mother died a few days after taking the first dose of the vaccine. She had tuberculosis. All the clinical trials, innovation, speed, and research mean nothing to the family now. I ask myself, “Would she still be alive if she had better medical assistance,” or “if she had banged that thaali a little harder?
Generally, watching a film helps me take my mind off things, but it’s not working here. I have never in my life felt so helpless. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know how to help.
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Killing the social dilemma
I just opened my Netflix viewing history to check when did I watch The Social Dilemma. It has been 18 days. I watched it on 10th September 2020. I have been trying to limit my social media usage for quite a while now, and to be honest, I was struggling with it.
After watching The Social Dilemma, I followed a few steps and would like to share them (or better document them, because no one reads this blog).
The 15 mins value
I had made my mind that I want to quit social media. I didn’t want to delete my accounts (you know because I may need them again), so I did a little, you can call it an experiment. I opened Facebook and scrolled for 15 minutes without any break. Then I made a list of things that I found in the 15 minutes scroll that may add some value to my life OR I would learn something from it, and I found ZERO things.
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Cinema Lectures for COVID-19 (Raised 10 Lakhs+)
Satyanshu is a National Award-winning filmmaker and writer. He wrote the poems that you see in Udaan, he wrote lyrics for Ferrari Ki Sawari, and he directed Chintu Ka Birthday along with his brother Devanshu.
He is conducting cinema lectures online with filmmakers, writers, cinematographers, technicians, and artists. He is not charging anything for these lectures. All you have to do is make a donation to any of the COVID-19 relief funds.
I came to know about these lectures from Facebook. I knew for a fact that Satyanshu is a student of cinema, and he talks very passionately about cinema. I remember seeing him in AIB’s First Draft promotional videos. I remember watching Chintu Ka Birthday in a theatre which was half-full.If you are an aspiring maker or a film buff then I would highly recommend you to join these lectures. You will donate towards a good cause, and at the same time learn a few good things. Here is a list of the upcoming lectures.
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The bees problem
You ever heard of The bees problem?
No, not the actual beekeepers’ problem. We are not talking about that here. I don’t know where I read this but I remember the crux of it.
Consider, all your aspirations are bees. Now our mind is such that we want to achieve a lot of things in life. You may want to write, but at the same time, you may want to learn How to pilot a plane. There is no end to our aspirations. Although, it’s a good thing, but do you want to become a jack of all trades, and MASTER OF NONE.
Learning a thing or acquiring a new skill demands your undivided attention, and although it may look daunting in the beginning but things will fall into places if you keep at it.