KOCHI: Trolls and memes are a great source of entertainment for people around the world, especially during lockdown. From spreading awareness to making people laugh their heads off with reckless humour, many troll pages and groups are on a race to provide the best humour online. Social media platforms were flooded with trolls once the government decided to appoint teachers at ration shops as part of the Covid-19 emergency in the state.
Many debates were fought on social media platforms when few teachers burned the government order stating a salary cut. So, when the government asked the teachers to serve at ration shops, many saw this as a payback for their actions. However, troll pages were busy imagining situations where parents and students run into their teachers at ration shops.
Many troll pages like Troll Malayalam, Troll Kerala, International Chalu Union (ICU) and Troll Republic had to sit through heavy post traffic on Wednesday and Thursday. Many memes linked mathematics teachers to C P Chacko from ‘Spadikam’ played by actor Thilakan.
“It could be funny when teachers and students meet outside the school. The troll creators made good use of this possibility,” says Ananthu Balu, admin, Troll Malayalam. They received around 300 memes related to the issue. “The best ones were posted on our page. People are having so much free time due to lockdown and they are really enjoying it,” he adds.
Perhaps, the most shared meme was the one where the student was made to stand on a kerosene barrel by a Mathematics teacher for talking while standing in a queue at the shop. “That’s my favourite and was widely shared on social media,” says Anish A, admin, Troll Kerala. “Memes related to salary deduction drew a lot of criticisms. The teacher-student memes will be trend on the internet for two or three days. After that the focus will shift to something else,” he adds.
The memes featuring language teachers are equally hilarious, whereas, the science and geography teachers are being ridiculed for ‘too much technicality’. “Humour is the best way to keep yourself entertained during the lockdown days. The classroom jokes are always a hit. They are also up-to-date on current affairs. So every day we expect fresh memes,” says Anoop A V, a bank manager.