The year that was!

I am stepping onto the second year of blogging today. πŸ™‚ At the end of one year of blogging, I am happy that I started blogging. Since this blog has become an important part of me in the past one year, there is no way I am going to settle for a short post now. πŸ˜› Here’s looking back at the first year of my blog. πŸ˜‰

For the first time, I tried to put into writing what I felt on listening to a song or watching a movie or just my views on what was happening around me or some random thoughts and discovered that I too can write something about music, movies, everyday happenings, etc. I tried to make a blog post out of anything and everything that I felt was β€˜postable’. πŸ˜‰

When I wrote my first post (Arvind, instead of publishing my first post once again as a part of your tag, I am linking it now. πŸ˜› ), I had no clue at all as to what I was going to write about. At that time, the only interesting thing happening was the December Season and for the first time, I tried putting into writing what all I enjoyed/ didn’t enjoy in a concert. But, I was absolutely dissatisfied with what I was writing and told a friend of mine that all I am writing is, the rendition of this song was good or that raaga alapana was excellent, etc. (even now I am doing the same thing only! And the reason why I am not posting regularly about the concerts I attend, is only this. Nowadays, I post about a concert only if I feel like writing about it) I told her that am at a loss of adjectives to use for my posts anymore. πŸ˜› So much so that I decided that I won’t post anything about the concerts. But, boredom got the better of me and I kept writing posts on the concerts (please don’t refer to those as reviews, simply because, they are not).

That’s when January came and I wanted to write something for the birthday of A.R.Rahman, the only music director whose music had fascinated me like no others’. Call it the turning point or whatever, Prabhu linked my post in his’ (for which I can’t thank him enough since I know, quite a few of my now regular readers came to my blog only through his) and I got the first of the regular readers of my blog, Adiya and Ranjhith (Hell’s Angel – a very close friend of mine, a couple of my friends and my sister were the initial readers of my blog and later, Prabhu too started reading. Don’t know if there were any silent readers πŸ˜‰ ). Very soon, the number of regular readers of my blog started increasing and comments started pouring in, thanks to my posts on A R Rahman and his music and later, my posts on Mani Ratnam’s movies. I owe a big thanks to Mani Ratnam and A R Rahman too! πŸ˜‰ But for my passion for their works, I wouldn’t have written so many posts. Each time I rave about a song or a movie here, I don’t know why, but I find my liking for it increasing even more!

Today, thanks to my blog, I am doing something that I cannot imagine doing in the real world. If I am sitting face to face with say ten people, it will be a long time before I start freely interacting with them. But through my blog, I am doing the unimaginable for me by interacting with so many of you. πŸ™‚ Today, not only are there a lot of readers reading my blog, but a few of them have become good friends of mine too. πŸ™‚ Thanks to my writing about music and Mani Ratnam’s movies, I am getting to interact with many Rahmaniacs, Carnatic music lovers and fans of Mani Ratnam here. I feel that networking through blogs is lot better than through networking sites (one reason being I can restrict the details I give about myself πŸ˜‰ ) and I am enjoying every bit of it. πŸ™‚ Thanks a ton to each one of you for making this happen! πŸ™‚

At the end of Q4 of this blog, I have decided to stop posting the customary quarterly blog stats from now on. πŸ˜› Presenting the stats at the end of the first year:

No. of posts: 224
No. of comments: 2342 (including my reply to comments)
Hits: 73727 (sum of the hits of both my old blog as well as this one)

With this, ends my vote of thanks! πŸ˜‰ Thanking each one of you once again! πŸ™‚

21 thoughts on “The year that was!

  1. sangs

    Congrats,Aparna.I came to your blog via Prabhu’s too.Found it good reading and stayed on πŸ˜‰ .Am still hoping there will be a post on “Nayagan” πŸ˜‰ As ur blog second anniv gift,perhaps you know,to all your readers .

    Reply
  2. arvind

    WOW..five stars for it..
    i am glad to be ur blog’s reader …keep blogging..hope you continue for blogging for many more years πŸ™‚
    by the way u told me that u will complete the tag when you have nothing to post…
    i wonder if you really dint get anything to post..you can always write on ur favourite topics like music (carnatic ) :P….

    Reply
  3. Sathej

    Hello Aparna,
    Firstly congrats…
    I really don’t remember how I visited your blog-it wasn’t through Prabhu’s I think…Anyway, I have been reading since January this year and its been nice all the way:) You write quite nicely about concerts – you aren’t biased and its actually good to know such views. We people are all biased πŸ™‚ Keep writing:..
    Sathej

    Reply
  4. Sreekrishnanv

    So happy for you – esp when you thanked Rahman and Maniratnam – without whom – For me too, my passion to do things with perseverance and innovation would not have been there – Well said – and it is also the reason why i started blogging

    I dont remember how i landed here – but i dont think thats important to me now. This is one blog that shares the same views on few topics, talks about something that i wish to and introduces me to new people (like Sangs and Sami) – introduces new blogs to me like the Aminus3 photoblogs in your “blogs i read” – what more do i want out of a blog ? infact i havent updated my blogroll – only to use others blog rolls like yours prabhu’s and Anu Srinivasan for quick access πŸ˜›

    Also it was great to see some known faces visit your blog as i visit their blog through different source – only to find that like minds unite … anywhere

    I have also enjoyed comments back on my blog from you –

    Great work till now – hopefully you continue to do so whatsoever !! Congrats once again !!

    Reply
  5. Srikanth

    //
    No. of posts: 224
    No. of comments: 2342 (including my reply to comments)
    Hits: 73727 (sum of the hits of both my old blog as well as this one)
    //
    No. of smileys: Countless ! :)))

    Great… Keep going! All the best!!

    Reply
  6. puranjoy

    Hi,
    I guess I am quite new to your blog compared to other regular readers.
    Congrats, 224 posts in 1 year is a great achievement.
    Can I put in a few wishes as well? And does Alaipayuthe rock or what? πŸ™‚

    Reply
  7. TeAl

    Congrats Aparna!
    My blog celebrated it’s 2nd bday recently … of course it was a quiet celebration since it went forgotten πŸ˜› Keep up the good work buddy!

    Reply
  8. Hari Prasad

    Congrats! As you might know I came to your blog very recently when I did a Google search for “Mani Ratnam blog” the day after I met him. Yours was the first site to show up! Have been reading your posts since then, but I think you got into that number game during this time and I ended up seeing more numbers instead of words! Anyways hope to read more in the days to come.

    Btw, have blogrolled you! πŸ™‚

    Reply
  9. Sami

    Congrats ! and me too came to your blog through prabhu’s blog. Found it interesting and stayed here πŸ™‚ To me what interested was your blogpost on travel, music reviews, chennai blogposts, photos and misc… πŸ™‚ Keep writing more on this regard also.

    On this occasion of second aniv, Chennai and its temples pathi oru blog post pannunga πŸ˜‰

    Cheers !

    Reply
  10. Aparna

    SK,
    Thank you

    Sangs,
    Thank you! Surely there will be a post on Nayagan. But I don’t think I can write it this week.
    >ur blog second anniv
    Hey it’s first anniversary only!!

    Adiya,
    Thanks

    Arvind,
    Thank you!
    >u will complete the tag when you have nothing to post
    I remembered your tag just I typed the line. So I just included that line πŸ˜‰
    Well, I have lots of topics to write a post on. Just that am not getting much time these days….

    Sathej,
    Thank you. I think you must have come from Ram’s blog only.
    >you aren’t biased
    Is it? I don’t know in what way you are saying am not biased

    Reply
  11. Aparna

    Sreekrishnan,
    Thank you πŸ™‚
    >and it is also the reason why i started blogging
    Nice to know that. I wish you write often on Rahman’s music
    >I dont remember how i landed here
    But I remember. It was through Prabhu’s blog only. It was when the Sivaji songs got leaked.
    >shares the same views on few topics, talks about something that i wish to and introduces me to new people
    My blog does so many things? πŸ˜‰ Great to know that. Your comment is a reminder for me to update the ‘Blogs I Read’ page with some more blogs I am reading.

    Srikanth,
    LOL! Thanks πŸ™‚

    Puranjoy,
    Thank you. Yeah Alaipayuthey rocks πŸ˜‰

    Teal,
    Thank you. A belated congrats to you too πŸ™‚

    Hari,
    Thanks! I am sure you will see only words from now on

    Siva,
    Thank you

    Sami,
    Thank you. Hope you never lose interest in reading my blog πŸ˜‰
    >occasion of second aniv
    Idhu first anniversarydhaan!
    You are asking me to put photos for posts on temples. So naan first Chennai templesa photos edukkaNum before I can write a post πŸ™‚ But yeah I have photos of one temple. So I will try to write a post soon!

    Reply
  12. Sathej

    Yes, thinking back, it must have been from Ram’s blog only.
    Biased – well, reflecting back now, you are a little biased towards TMK and Sanjay, yes :). But otherwise, compared to reviews we read everywhere (and that includes me), yours seem to be from an unbiased standpoint. Shall elaborate later πŸ™‚
    Sathej

    Reply
  13. Mathangi

    hey congrats! sorry i’m a bit late πŸ™‚
    i actually don’t remember how i landed here first. but i never knew u were my friend’s sister. later only i realised that. πŸ™‚

    Reply
  14. Ranjhith

    Huhu! Great going. Letme “whistle” twice for this. πŸ™‚

    > I have decided to stop posting the customary quarterly
    > blog stats from now on.

    We’ll certainly miss this! πŸ™‚

    Just a ques. Will you be wholeheartedly parting the enormous earnings with the Ads you run here? Becos, Its we who help you in the earnings. πŸ˜‰

    Reply

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