Introduction

In the past few years, quite a few Bollywood songs have become widely popular for their inclusion of mainstream western ideas. One of these well-known and frequently played songs is Selfie Le Le Re from Bajrangi Bhaijaan. While the song is meant to be comical and the catchy tune is fun to listen to, the implications of selfies in society itself have recently proven to be quite disastrous for India.

Problem

The adored and entertaining act has apparently caused numerous deaths among teens and adults alike. People seem to be neglecting all common sense and engaging in dangerous activities when taking a selfie that put them and those around them in dire situations. As a result, a new campaign, “KIllfies,” is rapidly being introduced throughout various states in India. The campaign stemmed from authorities in Karnataka and its main purpose is to warn society of the idea that taking selfies can and has resulted in death.

The campaign is said to be inspired by the recent deaths of four students due to selfie-related incidents. A group of students on a field-trip had taken a selfie while swimming which was later identified to have a young boy drowning in the background. The negligence of the students that were too occupied with the selfie, proves that the tragic death might have been avoided if the students weren’t facing the other way. Similar incidents like this, have encouraged southern states in India to raise awareness about selfies.

Solution

Given that India is estimated to reach well over 300 million smartphone users, the prevalence of the problem will only increase if proper reform methods are not used. The article discusses putting up signage in tourist areas to raise awareness and the campaign hopes to spread to various online platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.
Police departments have also set out warnings that those who attempt to take selfies, “…on railway tracks or flyovers, or while travelling on buses,” will be arrested. The department needs to go further and strictly enforce these warnings, as well as potentially create a law.

Something as simple as taking a selfie should be as fun as Bajrangi Bhaijaan made it sound, not dangerous!