Mumbai: Last week, famous YouTuber Anurag Dobhal, popularly known as UKO7, sustained severe injuries after his car crashed on the Delhi-Meerut expressway. While livestreaming, an emotional Anurag called it the “final ride” before his car crashed into a divider. Speaking on the incident, singer and performer Parleen Gill said, “Firstly, we need to understand that we as Homo sapiens were never really meant to live the kind of lives we are living today—inside concrete buildings and constantly on social media. Human beings are meant to live closer to nature, the very nature we are now unfortunately destroying.”
“This itself tells us that we must be extremely mindful of how we use social media. None of our forefathers lived like this. Ours is the first generation dealing with non-stop scrolling and constant digital exposure. Because of that, we need to be far more careful and aware of both the positives and the negatives of this digital world,” he added.
He believes the current generation might become a topic of study for the future generations on the topic of the effects of excessive screen time. He said, “The brain often cannot distinguish between what is real and what is merely on a screen. For example, you might be sitting comfortably in your air-conditioned room watching a reel about war or tragedy, yet your brain reacts emotionally as if you are actually in that situation. That constant stimulation can deeply affect mental health.”
He feels that earlier, people often kept their struggles and emotions private; however, today, individuals openly share their most vulnerable moments online. He said, “With time and evolution, most of us have had to adapt to new realities. Just like species evolve with their environment, human behavior also evolves with technology.”
“Adaptation must come with balance. One cannot simply share everything online without thinking. We must use our common sense and emotional maturity to decide what should remain private and what is appropriate to share publicly. Balance is the key,” he added.
Parleen also emphasized that social media has created a space where people from across the world can instantly react to someone else’s life, opinions, or struggles. He said, “People who are mentally fragile or constantly battling self-doubt are more vulnerable to the negative side of social media. Continuous judgment, trolling, and unsolicited opinions can push them into deeper emotional distress.”
“That’s why taking care of one’s mental health has become extremely important today. In many ways, it is a key skill for survival in this digital era,” he added.
He agrees that social media comes with a lot of pressure. He said, “Society is moving in both positive and negative directions at the same time.
The positive side is that communication has become incredibly fast and efficient. For example, through a simple WhatsApp group you can gather or coordinate with a hundred people within minutes.”
“The negative side is that real human connection is slowly fading. Many relationships today are becoming superficial because so much of our interaction is happening through screens rather than through genuine human presence,” he added.
As a society, he mentioned that people should be compassionate towards fellow human beings, animals, and the environment. He said, “This value cannot be taught overnight. It needs to be nurtured from early childhood, ideally starting in schools, which unfortunately are still lacking in many places. The second step is regulation. Governments should introduce stricter and more thoughtful policies for social media platforms because a large part of society now exists in that digital space.”
“Third, children below the age of 18 should ideally be kept away from social media. They should first grow and develop as emotionally stable individuals before entering this intense world of constant comparison, reels, and digital pressure. Lastly, parents must actively guide their children about the advantages and dangers of social media so that they grow up using it responsibly rather than being controlled by it,” Parleen ended.
