Five little icons that somehow became a part of my everyday life
By SHIVASHRI GUPTAA | SHREEBIRD
Have you ever looked at your phone and realised that some apps are no longer just apps?
They become little windows into different versions of ourselves.
One app connects us with people.
One takes us into stories.
One helps us think.
One teaches us something new.
And another simply lets us sit back, put our headphones on, and disappear into another world for a while.
If someone asked me, тАЬWhat are your five favourite apps on your phone?тАЭ, my answer would be quite simple:
Instagram. Pratilipi. ChatGPT. YouTube. Kuku FM.
Interestingly, these five apps represent five different sides of meтАФconnection, stories, curiosity, creativity and imagination.
So, let me take you through the five apps I probably open more often than I would like to admit! ЁЯШД
ЁЯМ╕ 1. Instagram тАФ My Window to the World
Instagram is probably the easiest answer on my list.
For me, Instagram isn’t only about scrolling through reels or looking at pretty photographs.
It is a huge visual world.
One minute I might be looking at travel inspiration, the next minute a beautiful quote, then a book recommendation, a mandala, a creative idea or someone’s fascinating story.
And as someone who loves writing and creating content, Instagram also feels like a little creative playground.
It makes me think:
тАЬHow can an idea be expressed in just one picture?тАЭ
That’s something I genuinely love about it.
A good Instagram post can sometimes say in ten seconds what a thousand words struggle to explain.
тЭдя╕П What I love about Instagram
- Visual inspiration
- Quotes and ideas
- Travel & lifestyle inspiration
- Discovering creators
- Sharing my own content
- Staying connected with the world
But there’s one lesson Instagram has taught me too:
Not everything beautiful on a screen represents a beautiful life behind the screen.
So I try to use Instagram for inspirationтАФnot comparison.
My rating: тнРтнРтнРтнРтнР
ЁЯУЦ 2. Pratilipi тАФ Where Stories Feel Personal
Pratilipi
If Instagram is my visual world, Pratilipi is my story world.
There is something incredibly special about reading stories in Indian languages.
Sometimes you don’t need a complicated bestseller.
You simply need a story that makes you feel something.
Pratilipi brings together stories, poems, novels and writers across languages, making reading feel much more accessible.
And perhaps that’s what I like most about it.
It reminds me that good storytelling doesn’t need a fancy cover.
A simple sentence written by someone somewhere can suddenly become your thought.
A fictional character can make you understand your own emotions.
A story can take you somewhere without you moving an inch.
ЁЯМ┐ Why Pratilipi is one of my favourites
Because I don’t always read to learn.
SometimesтАж
I read simply to feel.
And that’s equally important.
My rating: тнРтнРтнРтнРтнР
ЁЯдЦ 3. ChatGPT тАФ My Thinking Partner
ChatGPT
Okay, this one was almost impossible to leave out. ЁЯШД
ChatGPT has become much more than an app for me.
It’s like having a brainstorming partner available whenever an idea suddenly appears.
A blog idea at midnight?
ChatGPT.
Need help organising thoughts?
ChatGPT.
Want to understand something complicated in simpler words?
ChatGPT.
Need ten different perspectives on an idea?
ChatGPT again.
But what I value most isn’t simply getting answers.
It’s the ability to have a conversation with an idea.
Sometimes writing begins with one tiny thought:
тАЬWhat if I write about this?тАЭ
And then the thought becomes a paragraph.
The paragraph becomes a blog.
And suddenly, something that existed only in my head has become something I can share with someone else.
That’s the magic I appreciate.
ЁЯТб What ChatGPT represents to me
Curiosity.
It encourages me to ask:
Why?
How?
What if?
And sometimes the best thing an AI can do isn’t give you an answer.
It’s help you discover the question you actually wanted to ask.
My rating: тнРтнРтнРтнРтнР
тЦ╢я╕П 4. YouTube тАФ My Pocket University
YouTube
If someone told me I could keep only one platform for learning, entertainment and exploration, YouTube would have a very strong case.
YouTube is basically a giant library where the books can talk.
Want to learn something?
There is probably a video.
Want to understand a difficult concept?
Someone has probably explained it.
Want travel inspiration?
There are thousands of journeys waiting to be watched.
Want music?
It’s there.
Want documentaries?
There are countless ones.
Want to laugh after a tiring day?
There’s something for that too.
For me, YouTube has a unique combination:
Learning + entertainment + discovery.
And I love that.
It has also changed my understanding of education.
Learning doesn’t always have to happen inside a classroom.
Sometimes it happens while you’re sitting on your bed with a cup of coffee and watching a 15-minute video.
ЁЯОУ My favourite thing about YouTube
It makes self-learning possible.
You can literally decide:
тАЬI want to learn this.тАЭ
And start.
My rating: тнРтнРтнРтнРтнР
ЁЯОз 5. Kuku FM тАФ My Audio Escape
Kuku FM
And finally comes the app that gives my eyes a little break.
Kuku FM.
There are days when I don’t want another screen.
I just want to put my headphones on and listen.
Audiobooks, stories, knowledge, motivational content and other audio programmes can turn an ordinary routine into something interesting.
Walking?
Listen.
Travelling?
Listen.
Doing some household work?
Listen.
Trying to relax?
Listen.
That’s the beauty of audio.
Your eyes can be busy while your mind travels somewhere else.
And sometimes listening to a story feels more intimate than reading it.
The narrator’s voice, pauses and emotions add another dimension to the experience.
ЁЯОз Why I keep coming back to Kuku FM
Because it lets me consume stories without staring at a screen.
And in a world where we already look at screens so much, that’s actually refreshing.
My rating: тнРтнРтнРтнРтнР
ЁЯМ╗ Five Apps, Five Different Versions of Me
If I think about it, these five apps actually tell a small story about who I am.
| App | What it gives me |
|---|---|
| ЁЯУ╕ Instagram | Inspiration & connection |
| ЁЯУЦ Pratilipi | Stories & emotions |
| ЁЯдЦ ChatGPT | Ideas & curiosity |
| тЦ╢я╕П YouTube | Learning & entertainment |
| ЁЯОз Kuku FM | Stories & relaxation |
And maybe that’s why they remain my favourites.
They aren’t simply sitting on my phone.
They represent different things I enjoy.
Instagram feeds my creativity.
Pratilipi feeds my imagination.
ChatGPT feeds my curiosity.
YouTube feeds my desire to learn.
Kuku FM feeds my love for stories.
ЁЯУ▒ What Does Your Phone Say About You?
Here’s an interesting little experiment.
Don’t tell me your favourite apps.
Instead, open your phone.
Look at the apps you use most.
Then ask yourself:
What do these apps say about me?
Maybe your phone says you’re a traveller.
Maybe you’re a reader.
Maybe you’re a gamer.
Maybe you’re a creator.
Maybe you’re a learner.
Maybe you simply love talking to people.
Or maybe, like me, your phone is a strange little combination of everything. ЁЯШД
Because our favourite apps are often tiny reflections of our personalities.
ЁЯМ┐ The SHREEBIRD Thought
Technology is often blamed for stealing our time.
And honestly, sometimes it does.
But perhaps the real question isn’t:
тАЬHow much time do I spend on my phone?тАЭ
The better question is:
тАЬWhat am I doing with the time I spend on my phone?тАЭ
The same phone can become a source of distractionтАж
or inspiration.
A place for comparisonтАж
or creativity.
A tool for procrastinationтАж
or learning.
It depends on how consciously we use it.
So these are my five favourite apps.
Not because they are necessarily the five тАЬbestтАЭ apps in the world.
But because each one gives me something different.
And perhaps that’s what makes a favourite app special.
It doesn’t just occupy space on your phone.
It occupies a tiny space in your life. тЭдя╕П
ЁЯТм Now It’s Your Turn
If you had to keep only five apps on your phone, which five would survive?
Would your list look anything like mine?
Instagram | Pratilipi | ChatGPT | YouTube | Kuku FM
Tell me your five.
Because sometimes, the easiest way to know someoneтАж
is to look at the five apps they can’t imagine deleting. ЁЯШЙ
ЁЯЫНя╕П SHREEBIRD RECOMMENDATIONS
If you enjoy reading, learning, journaling or listening to stories, you might also enjoy exploring:
ЁЯУЪ Books & reading accessories
ЁЯОз Comfortable headphones/earphones
ЁЯУУ Journals & notebooks
ЁЯУ▒ Mobile accessories
ЁЯТб Study & productivity tools
Some recommended product links may be affiliate links. If you purchase through them, SHREEBIRD may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
ЁЯМ║ SHREEBIRD
Read. Reflect. Create. Grow.
Personal stories тАв Books тАв Spirituality тАв Ideas тАв Life Lessons
Writer: SHIVASHRI GUPTAA
Website: shreebird.wordpress.com
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