It’s funny how the ‘theme’ for the week is dictated by social media, where this week, thanks to National Handloom Day, our timelines were flooded with women in beautiful saris. I’ll have to plead guilty myself and will admit I took the lazy man’s route, rooting through pictures from earlier in the year, while others went through the trouble of draping themselves (accompanied by the hashtag ‘All dressed up and nowhere to go’). I chose a picture from a private event in February, a fundraiser for the weavers of Chendamangalam, where all of us are proudly showing off our saris, so happy and free, unaware of what was lurking just around the corner. Little did we know, life was about to completely change.
The ‘days’ continued through the week, everything from Sister Day, to International Cat Day to even National Lipstick day. As you can imagine, make-up artists across Instagram grabbed the opportunity to showcase their skills, encouraging us to try one shade or the other, with all-important ‘poll’ questions like “Nude or Red?” I fully went down the Internet rabbit hole from one make-up tutorial to the next, and before you know it, it’s 2 am. Who else has been in this similar situation, please raise your hand.
My week also included an interview with Dr Karthik Ram, answering FAQs about COVID-19, giving us a history on other epidemics as well as busting myths. Of course, once he said that most cloth masks are ineffective, I was in full panic mode and was immediately on the hunt for an ‘anti-viral’ one. Almost on cue, I came across a friend wearing special protective ‘Eyeris’ eyewear meant to be worn while you’re outside the house. With studies suggesting that there may be transmission through an airborne route, it seems wearing a mask alone is not enough and it’s advised to cover your eyes too. To be honest, my first thought was ‘are you kidding me?’ Here I’m thinking about my nose and mouth, should I be thinking about my eyes as well? After trying a pair of them on though, (and taking a selfie or two) I will admit they look pretty cool and I might just jump on this bandwagon.