Why hanker after virtual future?

Jaspreet Singh

Humans have always been curious to see what the future holds for them. So-called spiritual gurus claim to offer a peek into the future and solutions to avert any untoward situation. Recently on Instagram, wrinkled faces of celebrities whom I follow caught my attention. I learnt that this was done through a filter available on a new application where you can see how you would look when you age. The FaceApp has become a rage, with everyone from Hollywood to Bollywood using it. 

The uploading of pictures by the celebrities has nudged the common man to try this app that shows you your aged self. Privacy concerns are, of course, rampant. What is intriguing is that everyone is interested to know their future self while on the other hand, several experiments are being conducted to slow down the ageing process. The multi-million beauty industry would cringe at the thought of wrinkles and hollow mouths. 

In this day and age when social media has put a question mark on the credibility of content and privacy breaches, it is dangerous to use such apps. Every day we see something becoming a viral hit among netizens and people adapting to the change without weighing the pros and cons. We have become so technology dependent that anything that is offered to us in the form of technology is immediately accepted. 

But deep down we know that no one can withstand the ravages of time. From an old building to an old vehicle, everything corrodes with the passage of time. Our face, our body is no exception. 

New apps have been launched and artificial intelligence has made it easier to make them popular among the masses. Some of us are glued to our mobile screens because the phone is the new television. It is the new world where we have our friends, family and everyone so close, and yet so far from us. Despite the technological advancements, you cannot see the future on the Internet, you cannot experience the love and warmth of a hug on social media through emojis, you cannot have real conversations with parents and personal meetings with friends. We must see technology as just a creation of human intelligence and nothing else. 

Many of us think that we won’t be included in the uber-cool groups of celebrities and the rich if we don’t try this age filter challenge. Don’t think that you are the only one who has not accepted this challenge. Drowning in the mess that the Internet has created might leave you craving for more because we are consuming data every minute. Other things are far more important than seeing your future face. Make your present perfect; the future face will reflect only these perfections. Remember, this is artificial, and artificial is transient.