Senior bloggers on social media are making heads turn with their content

He started this hobby after retiring from a private firm at the age of 60. When he visited his daughter in the US a few years ago, Senguttuvan got introduced to cooking. “I was helping my daughter in the kitchen -- it became a daily affair and I started loving the process of cooking. Seeing my interest, my daughter suggested sharing photos and recipes on Instagram. I became active on the social media platform and started sharing food pictures and recipes daily. Even though I shared photographs of butterflies on Instagram, people respond more to my food-related content,” says Senguttuvan

Before retirement, he used to travel across the country for work and his wife took care of the cooking. “Now, I have asked her to rest and took over the kitchen completely. I love the entire process. Sometimes, my wife and I have some differences of opinion about the menu or the kind of cuisine I select. But I make something special for her and she will be happy. The lockdown has helped me focus more on trying various south Indian traditional recipes. Daily, I post pictures of breakfast and lunch along with recipes,” he adds.

Senguttuvan is happy with the way social media has treated him so far. “I have 12,000+ followers and the response/feedback has been amazing. Each post of mine will have at least 200 likes and 15-20 comments. I take suggestions from my followers. Social media is a great platform to learn and showcase our skills. We will also get to meet like-minded people virtually. The people who respond to my posts are mainly women between the age group of 25 to 35. They love my cooking methods and appreciate me wholeheartedly. This motivates me daily to come up with some unique dishes,” the septuagenarian adds.

Senguttuvan’s day starts at 4.30 in the morning. Some of his followers are from the US and he spends some time in the morning to respond to their queries. “If I am shooting the dishes, I finish cooking breakfast and lunch by 10.30 or 11. I also follow some popular food bloggers from across the country. I don’t want to get addicted to social media, so I have limited my screen time to four hours a day. I have done a few live sessions also. So far, it is a happy space and I enjoy the vibe,” he smiles.

This banker-turned-food blogger’s bio on social media reads ‘proud ex-banker, mom, grandmom and insta aunty to many’. Shanthi Ramachandran (56) enjoys all the titles. “It’s a great journey so far. Ten years ago, I wasn’t even ready to use a smartphone. But slowly, I learned things and I should say that social media gave me recognition. Banking to food blogging was a smooth transition. Whatever I do — be it banking or blogging, I do it sincerely. It makes me feel good when my followers on Instagram appreciate my cooking. I learned cooking from my mother and mother-in-law,” says Shanthi, who has more than 52,000+ followers on Instagram.

The former banker tells us that the two important lessons she learned from social media are learning and unlearning. “As I grow old, I have to unlearn many things that I have learned. There are so many stigmas that I have learned right from childhood. To cope up with the present generation and changes, I also have to learn new things daily. Irrespective of age, your mind should be open to learning new things. This will keep you active,” she smiles.