Starting problem
This is not about how did I discover MouthShut. Rather what did I discover in MS. The ‘how’ story would be as simple as “ one of my friend orknob bulldozed me in here” & it would not stack up much as a review!
There’s always a first time
Surprisingly within minutes of posting my first review, sourray commented few lines & asked me to “peace out”! Then a smiling lady called amateurabe put a very motivating comment, & returned with another lively comment after 1 month after seeing the movie! Sureshmehcnit commented with good words too. I noticed all these members had a golden star mark beside their Ids. When I started wondering if only star writers have the obligation to comment on debut reviews, got comments from three weird IDs- moviezombie, ps316(who called himself rattlesnake & hizzzed off) & The_Reviewer. I was elated to receiving positive comments. The_Reviewer was extra inquisitive about my ID & asked what if it was flyingfish! Weirdo.
Under the people tree*
I was simply lucky to get noticed & commented in my debut, also by brilliant writers like Sajita & Sarav. I did sent M2M to Faisal the CEO to check whether his claim of responding to M2M is true & to magicalsummer, as I admired her reviews & wanted her feedback. Both responded:).
Unfortunately, Anton(sourray) had to leave MS; but I will remember him being the first to comment. Similarly, thakurman was the first guy to add me in his TC. It was probably a wrong mouse click, as he did it 3 months even before my debut. Now that I have earned trust from 100 members, he still glows at the very bottom of the list, the evergreen Evereddy!
Clearly, orknob, souray, amatuerabe, The_Reviewer, Kumropotash, (she is not active anymore) & ajayan shares the primary responsibility to hook me onto MS with their motivating comments, high ratings & TC additions.
After the initial ecstasy died, it felt like wandering inside a labyrinth in Treasure Island. Every avenue, each alley unfolded numerous topics, brilliant reviews & gem of writers. If I try explaining it my way, it would come out like this-
Moviebuffs – To read reviews on quality cinema irrespective of origin or get feedback on, one must look up to whitedevil, moviezombie, Indian1969, patenik2, sarav, ajayan, mb07. After 1 year I must add ipshonulu, ravidutt, fog &wind. For bollywood release FDFS reviews, the baton seems to have changed hand from Prasidhha & fenil_seta to Paulsb02 with occasional appearance from Pranay22, Parnil. Some people have stopped cticize-ing as well. Ajayan writes excellent reviews on regional movies & Sajita is a master storyteller, with her picturesquely grasping narration. This section would remain incomplete without the mention of jbz7879 who appeared like a comet, wrote like there was no tomorrow & no comma full stop & dissappeared.
Bookworms- Great book reviewers who easily comes to mind are sumit_only, mimi_mou, jaideepkhanduja, pri20, indian1969, mbfarookh, nitesh1114, Paulsb02, magicalsummer, envyram, afrank, main_chup, mydessertz The_Reviewer, akisha & these days chintu25, CoolWater, ajjis. Not to forget paulose & zuludancing who are my inspiration to review at least 1 book someday.
Musiclovers- - I find this topic as extremely difficult for me to write just because of the fact that I can’t express my likings in words. While Sheermelody, Sarav, Indian1969, psyxx, sureshmehcnit, systems_shadow does tremendous justice to the subject, the information about music composers, lyricists & singers they provide, comes extremely useful.
Moodchangers - They are gems, each with their unique infectious style. While psyxx, sudipto33, walking_dude, amatuerabe, shyamnambiar, zuludancing, main_chup, megs_4u, orknob, The_Reviewer, angel_25, pri20, sajita, paulose, dismantlebrigade, he.has.a.point, Alok_sr, sndaya, envyram, magicalsummer, rohitthebest, cool_breeze, Jayaghosh2k, itskunchumon, moronic_mortal, hakoonamatata & somaat can inject wit into any topic & their reviews remain tremendously informative & useful. Somehow, I find cousin2 to be extremely humorous in her comments & I eagerly wait for her different take on any review. Alk_ranjan crossed a harharharsh & rugged path to prove that eventually humour wins!
Whenever I felt gloomy as a cloudy dull midsummer afternoon cool_breeze, CoolWater, shefali_oxygen, fog_&_wind changed the weather with their witty takes on movies or life in general. Refreshing bluegrapes with her intricately detailed travelogues & fashion advises & nandeetaoberoisharma & itikasharma with her lovable takes on life, have always been patient to answers my idiotic queries. Comments from retro_dood, bluegrapes, linkingparkfan has helped me cross centuries, repeatedly.
Unique diversified topics with informative, observant & opinionated “purist” reviews from anuj_bhatnagar22, cool_tanmay, nitesh1104, asterix786, gold_cancerian, Rajat_Sarin have always made space for great discussions.
Hats off to members like Cousin2, Diver, milinddesai, Indian1969, mohanR, who have crossed Herculean milestones & still continuing, they have withstood the test of time.
Wish you were here
When I started writing I wanted afrank, magicalsummer, diskonnekt & psyxx wake up from their deep hibernation & become active again. Miracle do happen, when wished hard enough. Wish Parikhmunir, matwalboy, mnc123 returns soon.
Some members who are not doing justice to their potential- Alok_sr, Kalparaj, See-thru-me, Ranjee4uall, doveye, moronic_mortal, cool_sagarika, arabiannites to name a few.
After one year I have discovered that,
I can write.
Like real world, it’s the people who make MS a better/ worse place.
Unlike real world there is enough space for everyone here.
An undersized T-shirt can be a made invaluable.
It does not take much to make a hundred friends.
It is not possible to keep everyone happy & be honest every time.
If you want to fly, you can.
A day will come when I won’t have any readership & my ID will submerge in anonymity, notwithstanding influencing anyone’s buying decisions, the truth that I have met many good souls & made numerous friends, would shine brighter than thousand stars.