Apptastic Meet

This entry is a part of the #VelfieOnNokiaXL meet experience contest


Indiblogger meets are always an amazing place to be. There is a lot of chanting, people show solidarity, passion. It is a fresh change from the routine; plus you get to take photos with celebs and then later show them off on your Facebook profiles.

One's blog gets a lot of social media attention and exposure and there is always the advantage of meeting old friends and making new ones. It would be mighty selfish not to click selfies with them in the meet.

My expression on the prospect of winning a brand new Nokia XL

My expression while trying to woo the judges into giving me the prize

My expression on realizing that I didn't get anything

Me scheming to get the Nokia XL somehow.

The meet started at 5 in the evening and it was a jam packed house. The venue was Oberoi so I was really looking forward to the food and trust me, if I had the patience, I would surely have taken photos of the food and instagrammed it like a normal netizen but when I finally got my platter, I think I turned into a vicious wolverine. Anyway, as I was saying, the meet started- Vineet, Nihal, Swati, Renee and gang were entertaining us with their witty lines and the bloggers' intro session was going on. We were busy 'giving a big hand' to our favourite bloggers- old and new but there was anticipation toward seeing Rajeev Makhni and Vikas Khanna- the two distinguished guests of the evening.

Finally the guests arrived and as always (this was the first time I was seeing them) Rajeev was at his candid best. He broke hearts when he divulged the fact that he was married, the crowd went "aww" when he introduced us all to his sweet lil daughter. Vikas was running a fever and was not talking much but girls sitting by my side found his fever cute too. I do not quite understand...

Then started the bout of activities and giveaways that only stopped until the time got too short and girls started getting restless because of the Cinderella curfew time was fast approaching and the tummies started grumbling. The dizzying number of activities were actually smart ways to introduce smart apps to us smart bloggers. People were made to jump in a pool of colorful balls, do push-ups, make chapatis and even strip (unintentionally) for the grand prize that was Nokia XL. Here are a few screenshots from the Indiblogger photo album from the candid moments that were the highlight of the evening.

There was one disappointment in this otherwise perfect evening and that was that the IndiCamera took no picture of mine through its beautiful, shiny lens. I think it was too busy covering all the pretty ladies or perhaps it was my fault that I was sitting among so many beauties that the camera couldn't possibly cover me among all of them. *Makes sad puppy face*

Anyway, the meet went on and took a non-veg turn when the contest regarding completing a caption starting with "Bigger is better because.." started. We will not go into the details of that contest but let's just say that in a meet that was mostly about software, a little mention of hardware was there. :P

The apps on display were the Profanity Filter which could beep out the profane words in a video and save you the embarrassment. The workout apps offered timers and tech support for the health nuts. Some myths regarding the Nokia XL's multitasking abilities- doubts regarding it were also busted. 

Food was as always good and the bar counter was full because it was Delhi. The barkeeps must have had their hands full. The drunkenness test app seemed a useful measure to check blood alcohol levels. 

Then people hounded the guests and demanded autographs and photographs like their birthrights. It was heartening to see Vikas being so polite and humble with all the requests despite his ill health. Also, if you're conducting a meet in Delhi, you have to have some uninhibited desi moments and yes, there were many.

There was a boy claiming to be 18+, looking 13, competing in push-up competitions with full-grown adults. We also had his mother shouting about his credentials from the back. Then there was a middle aged man showing up repeatedly and shouting in Vikas Khanna's face about the injustice that had been done unto him. Now here's an uncle who takes his culinary skills seriously. Rajiv joined in with the uncle and started pulling Vikas's leg. That was the most hilarious part for me. Then there was the girl who mentioned "boyfriends" and Rajiv was not one of those who'd let that slip of tongue go easily. People jumping in the pool of balls was the scariest. As it was not water, but solid balls, people were advised to take proper care and be gentle; contrary to the appeal, we saw people go face first, head first, all uninhibited fun. 

With those memories, I bid adieu to the Indiblogger and Nokia India team.I hereby thank them for this wonderful opportunity. I wish that next time I get the courage to participate and win too! :D