Rant, Reminiscence, Rumination

In the era of mindless content consumption, when people idly scroll their way through a labyrinth of subpar but annoyingly regular content, you often come across a gem or two, which make you stop and ponder. You marvel at how great it is, and stop to wonder why none of the stuff you’ve been gorging on for the past 20 minutes come close to matching it in terms of quality.

The answer, my friend, is algorithm. Unless you keep posting regularly, you won’t receive as much engagement, resulting in a precipitous dip in views. To keep you, the viewer engaged, channels and creators have to post on a very high frequency, to keep you satiated and the viewership stable.

The problem is that quality and quantity are inversely related. If one is given too much attention, the other suffers. It is bound to. If you try keeping up both, you end up running out or worse, burning out. You either stop, or start spewing subpar stuff that doesn’t do justice to the work that has gone before.

Polyphonic is a case in point. A channel that primarily focuses on the golden age of rock with generous detours into other genres, the videos produced are the epitome of excellence, packaging intriguing information into a visually appealing package, a prime example of the rare breed of superlative content standing out in the menagerie of mediocrity that is present-day YouTube.

Just yesterday, Noah Lefevre, the creator, brain and paintbrush behind this channel came out with a video declaring a “hiatus” from YouTube, bringing an end to a seven-year legacy of content gold, a treasure trove you have to explore, irrespective of your preference for the genre. His reason? Algorithmic rigour and copyright strikes.

The video resonated very deeply with me. It has been almost a year since I’ve stopped posting regularly on my blog, a result of a time-crunch that just wouldn’t let me write the kind of stuff I would like to. My articles require a tremendous investment of time, and while I was able to afford that kind of time from 2019 to 2022, I just wasn’t able to this year.

And there was absolutely no way that I would compromise on quality. I’m not claiming to produce stuff of quality that comes close to the likes of Polyphonic or Bong Eats (heck, it’s not even close), but I used to work really hard on it during whatever time I had, the perfect counter-balance to my life as a radiologist. The sparks may not be flying right now, but the fire still smoulders within.

And that is why it is so infuriating to look at some of the stuff on YouTube that passes for food content: a bunch of rich, over-entitled know-it-alls who splurge money on everything from gold-coated wagyus to 100 dollar melons just for views, converting the stuff I love so much into a heartless source of cash.

Many have asked me why I don’t make videos. The answer is simple: I have no experience in video making and currently, I don’t have the time to learn the craft. In the future, when the time is right, maybe I will learn how to do it (to get someone who knows it on-board) and switch the medium. Until then, I’ll stick to what I do best: write.

But the last year hasn’t given me enough time to write to the quality I’d like to. Bangalore is a Mecca for food lovers with its cornucopia of cuisines, but until I write something that does the food justice, I’m not doing it. No 100-word scribbles on the “tastiness” of the salmon sushi at my favourite Pan-Asian place, or 30-second reels on my unbridled emotions on eating an Onam Sadya for the first time, thank you.

December has been a relatively light month, and I’ve had a few days of free time recently; so I’ve decided to write again. This month will see a seasonal two-parter on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, writing which brought back memories and a surge of euphoria that I have missed for a really long time. I’m writing it at the moment, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I am enjoying penning it down right now.

What about 2024? I honestly don’t know. I have a few more articles in my bag which I’ll probably finalise and publish in the earlier months of the coming year. But new roads lie ahead in life, and the frequency might taper, yet again. Only time will tell. What I can tell right now is, it is really sad to see gems like Polyphonic exit stage right. Our reasons may be different, but seeing Noah’s unwavering commitment to quality content feels…..almost vindicating.

Given a choice between quality and quantity, I pick the former. If that means months, even years of hiatus, so be it. I might try out podcasting or videography if the format suits me, but the priority will never be mere popularity. The Gourmet Glutton is hibernating through the winter, in eager awaitment of a glorious spring.

In case you’re craving some holiday content right now, check out my older articles on the Christmas cake (2020), roast dinner (2021) and my seasonal poached pear “recipe” (2022). See you on Christmas Eve!