llms-full.txt — shreyaganeriwala.com
Generated: 2026-05-19
Source: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/
This file contains the full crawled text content of shreyaganeriwala.com for LLM consumption.
SITE METADATA
Title: Shreya Ganeriwala — Designer
Description: Brand, Web & Product Designer based in Bangalore, India
Contact: hello@shreyaganeriwala.com
Twitter: https://x.com/shre_no
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreyaganeriwala/
PAGE: Home (/)
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/
About
Shreya Ganeriwala is a Brand, Web & Product Designer based in Bangalore, India. She builds systems with the quiet conviction that good work outlasts its maker, and believes good typography deserves a proper home.
Navigation
Home: /
Work: /#work
Notes: /notes
Bookshelf: /bookshelf
Things: /things
Food Map: /food
Email: hello@shreyaganeriwala.com
Work / Projects
Rilo — Brand & Product Design (/work/rilo)
Noice — Web Design (/work/noice)
smallcase — Identity & Strategy (/work/smallcase)
Tok Jhal Mishti — Identity Design
smallcase DS — Design System (/work/smallcase-ds)
TRAQR — Product Design (/work/traqr)
Elixr — Identity & Web Design (/work/elixr)
Essential — Identity Design (/work/essential)
Samsung — Product Design (/work/samsung)
Daniel Sloss — Identity & Web Design (/work/daniel-sloss)
PAGE: Work — Rilo
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/work/rilo
Metadata
Industry: AI
Services: Brand & Product Design
Role: Founding Designer
Team size: Five people
Website: www.getrilo.ai
Overview
Rilo is a workflow AI for GTM teams at early-stage startups. The product enables AI agents handling competitive intelligence, pipeline signals, investor tracking, and content distribution. Founder Dhruv Jaglan provided an initial site built on Lovable with existing content but lacking brand identity. Shreya joined the five-person team as founding designer to develop brand strategy, product design, and communication materials from inception.
Problem
The core challenge was a disconnect between product capability and user comprehension. The website communicated basic functionality without conveying true potential or value proposition. Early access users struggled to understand full capabilities.
The product experience compounded the issue: the chat interface and the workflow builder weren't separated, so users couldn't tell what was happening or what was being built. Competitors possessed established visual languages while Rilo lacked both identity and a matching product experience.
Product Design
The designer restructured the Lovable foundation to improve communication clarity, enabling founders to understand product scope upon first visit.
The critical interface change involved separating the screen space. Previously, the unified chat and workflow builder created confusion about the construction process. The redesign initiates as a chat interface where prompts trigger a right-side graph view revealing workflow construction step-by-step with editability maintained.
Additional design work encompassed onboarding flows, core pages, run logic interfaces, and email composition functionality. An email composer was created using Claude artifacts to address immediate frontend needs while designing corresponding design systems and communication guidelines.
Brand Design
Shreya created comprehensive identity elements: logo, visual language, tone of voice, and complete brand strategy documentation defining positioning, values, market placement, and cross-surface communication approach.
Strategic positioning: "Most automation tools trade power for reliability. Rilo is built to deliver both."
Tagline: "Reliable by design."
Brand touchpoints included LinkedIn and Twitter presence, event branding, and merchandise.
PAGE: Work — Noice
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/work/noice
Metadata
Industry: Web3
Services: Web Design
Product: Oracle (agent.noice.so)
Overview
Noice evolved from a Farcaster-based social tipping platform. When founders pursued a pivot toward a decentralized token launchpad alternative to venture capital, they required Oracle as the distribution mechanism. Shreya collaborated on strategy, visual direction, and product development, constructing Oracle within Noice's existing black, white, and chrome aesthetic.
Problem
Cryptocurrency markets operate continuously with rapid news cycles. Oracle addressed friction in trading workflows by enabling users to execute purchases through Twitter interactions: liking tweets to buy tokens, commenting to signal stronger conviction and larger positions. The challenge involved designing trust across wallet connection, authentication, configuration, and transaction execution while avoiding Web3's reputation for complexity or opacity.
The Work
Oracle's design encompassed logo creation, identity development, and complete web application design. The product architecture included three core sections:
Wallet: Connected via Twitter authentication
Configure: Trading behavior settings for likes and comments, adjustable per blockchain (Base or Solana)
Receipts: Complete transaction history showing triggers, expenditures, received assets, and timestamps
A live ticker displaying real-time transactions was integrated to reinforce agent activity and reliability.
PAGE: Work — smallcase
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/work/smallcase
Metadata
Industry: Fintech
Services: Brand Identity & Strategy
Duration: Four years
Company: Bangalore-based fintech, 300 people
Overview
smallcase is a Bangalore-based fintech that lets retail investors buy curated baskets of stocks and ETFs. Shreya joined in 2021 as part of a two-person design team that expanded to six members across six business verticals.
Problem
smallcase possessed a trusted product but lacked a distinctive visual identity. The challenge involved creating something with enough internal logic that it could scale across thousands of touchpoints without losing character. Existing fintech design defaulted to either sterile corporate aesthetics or aggressive marketing approaches — neither suitable for accessibility.
Solution
Colour system development
Typography selection
Iconography creation
Illustration style establishment
Key Deliverables
2,000+ paid acquisition and retargeting ad creatives
Multi-channel campaigns (digital, social, print, OOH)
Illustration system explaining financial concepts
Notable campaigns: "The Halo Effect" and "Invest Like a Farmer"
Outcomes
1 crore+ app installs
1 lakh+ daily orders
4.6 App Store rating
Strong brand recognition and visual distinction
PAGE: Work — smallcase DS
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/work/smallcase-ds
Metadata
Industry: Fintech
Services: Design System
Overview
Shreya led a comprehensive design system initiative that brought the smallcase brand from marketing materials into the actual product experience. The work encompassed colour, typography, and a custom hand-drawn icon set, executed collaboratively with the engineering team.
Problem
The company faced scaling challenges with brand inconsistency across multiple products and surfaces. Without unified guidelines, each new interface required internal negotiations about visual details, creating inefficiencies and undermining the carefully established brand identity.
Deliverables
Colour tokens
Typography system
Spacing and grids
Component library
Custom iconography — every icon in the set was hand-drawn specifically for smallcase
Outcomes
The design system transitioned successfully from design to engineering handoff — described as the critical juncture where most systems falter. Additional work included SEO-optimised web pages maintaining visual consistency across digital touchpoints.
PAGE: Work — TRAQR
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/work/traqr
Metadata
Industry: Auto Tech
Services: Product Design
Engagement: One month
Overview
Traqr is a school bus tracking application used by parents and administrators to monitor student commutes in real time. The product required modernisation after a decade without updates. The engagement focused on redesigning both the application interface and brand identity.
Problem
The application accumulated ten years of incremental decisions that created compounded usability challenges. Parents experienced discoverability obstacles, navigation confusion, and unclear pathways to accomplish their primary objective. This friction represented more than minor inconvenience — it was a trust problem for parents seeking their child's location.
Design Solution
Navigation underwent complete restructuring with simplified information architecture. Live tracking and alert flows were rebuilt for clarity and intuitiveness. The visual rebranding introduced fresh typography, warm colour palettes, and distinct iconography to communicate safety and reliability.
Key insight: Brand and product were redesigned together, which matters — applying new visual identity alone would not resolve underlying experience problems.
PAGE: Work — Essential
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/work/essential
Metadata
Industry: Fintech
Services: Brand Identity
Overview
Essential Investment Manager is a financial advisory firm for people who have already built wealth and are now looking for someone to help them protect it.
Problem
The firm's clientele possessed established financial success and sought stability rather than risk-taking. The design challenge involved creating an identity that conveyed reliability and maturity without appearing rigid or conventional. The industry typically defaults to uninspired aesthetics, which Essential actively rejected.
Design Solution
The visual identity emphasises structure and restraint through a sophisticated blue colour scheme, minimalist geometric forms, and measured typographic choices. The logo symbolises solid foundation paired with forward trajectory — representing steady, deliberate advancement.
Tagline: "Build. Grow. Preserve."
Design applications: Stationery, campaign materials, comprehensive identity system.
Core objective: Establish trustworthiness throughout all brand touchpoints for high-net-worth clientele.
PAGE: Work — Daniel Sloss
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/work/daniel-sloss
Metadata
Industry: Entertainment
Services: Brand Identity & Web Design
Live site: sloss-by-sg.framer.website
Overview
A complete website redesign for Scottish stand-up comedian Daniel Sloss, centering on a singular goal: facilitating special viewership.
Problem
The original site scattered focus across multiple functions — streaming specials, tour listings, press coverage, news, merchandise, and social links — creating confusion for both new and returning visitors. No clear primary action existed, and the visual presentation didn't match Sloss's comedic persona or career prominence.
Solution
The redesign established one foundational principle: the primary purpose of this website is to watch Daniel Sloss's comedy specials. Secondary content remained accessible but deliberately subordinate.
Layout strategy: Two distinct modes separated intentionally. Storytelling pages employ expressive and dynamic elements reflecting Sloss's tone. Transactional pages (tours, specials) prioritise clarity and directness to reduce friction.
Typography: JetBrains Mono selected for its precise, direct, deadpan qualities mirroring the comedian's delivery style.
Colour system: A palette expressing emotional range through bold accents, differentiating content sections while reinforcing the overall visual narrative.
Result: A hierarchically restructured site that communicates identity immediately while guiding users toward viewing specials.
PAGE: Notes
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/notes
Description
"A personal archive of writing on design, culture, faith, friendship, and the things that don't fit neatly into a portfolio."
Posts
25 Feb 2026 — "The Real Cost of Ownership" (/blog/ownership)
20 Aug 2025 — "12 Notes at 27" (/blog/1227)
28 Oct 2024 — "Call it Fate, Call it Karma" (/blog/fatekarma)
1 Aug 2024 — "How branding brought me back to Duolingo every single day" (/blog/duolingo-branding)
17 May 2024 — "Too Busy for Friendship" (/blog/friendship)
31 Jan 2024 — "Modern Dating and the Illusion of Options" (/blog/moderndating)
PAGE: Blog — The Real Cost of Ownership
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/blog/ownership
Date: 25 Feb 2026
Reading time: 4 mins
When I was younger, adults asked me what I wanted to become when I grew up, and I, an obsessive Dan Brown reader, said confidently, 'a cryptographer!' Symbolism, logical reasoning, and the hunt for missing links fascinated me. I liked the idea that the world was layered and only a few trained themselves to see beyond the surface.
I grew up and became a designer. The job is eerily similar. I decode patterns for a living. Tone, silence, behaviour. Over time, you realise that there are patterns everywhere for people who notice. The clearest one: People with high talent and low ego always win. Not immediately, not as a spectacle, but quietly and consistently.
I've been working since I was seventeen. My family, my faculty, and my friends all taught me that respect is earned, not demanded. This is not about arrogance. It is about behaviour. No one is above or below you. Age, caste, or creed cannot define you. Only one thing can: how you treat people.
I've worked with many leaders. Yet I would still pick up the phone for only two of them. They never demanded respect. They simply embodied it. Trust does not come easily to me. I instinctively scan for gaps, inconsistencies, flaws. It's an occupational hazard. Respect and trust can only be earned slowly; that's the only way they last. In both of these teams, I noticed the same pattern: high talent, zero ego, small team.
It's hard to hide in small teams. There is no shield like process, structure, or hierarchies. You learn ownership in these small rooms. If something breaks, everyone knows where it broke, who made it, who is responsible. It teaches you accountability. It makes you feel alive. It makes you feel like you matter. Everything you say is taken seriously. Everything you do has consequences. It makes you a fast thinker. It gives you a bias to action. Ownership is intoxicating.
High performers own everything, especially their mistakes. They're less obsessed with outcomes and more disciplined about effort. Even if they have a single word in a script, they rehearse it. Precision matters to them. They treat their craft with respect. They treat time like it's finite, because it is. And they have very little tolerance for anyone who treats either casually. That's the difference. Most people are comfortable doing what is required; some are uncomfortable stopping there.
"If you want to build a ship, don't drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea." — Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
If I were building a team from scratch, I would look for talent. But I would look harder for ego. A high performer who gatekeeps is not protecting quality; they're protecting insecurity. They're threatened by the idea that someone else might possess similar skills. It's a fundamental misunderstanding of human psychology. People are different. Two people with identical technical ability will approach the same problem differently.
You want specialists who can go deep. You want at least one or two generalists who can connect the dots. Then there is the invisible role, the person who sets the standard. The person who stabilises the room. You.
When you're just starting out in your career, feedback is direct. You're corrected, you're shaped, you're forgiven. It's safe. Once you've had enough years in your career, something shifts. Feedback becomes subtle. The tone, the pauses, the delayed responses, the micro-expressions — no one spells it out anymore. You're expected to know. Congratulations, you are now a cryptographer!
No one announces this transition. Your emotional stability sets the ceiling. Your behaviour sets the tone. Your discipline sets the pace. You may not even have the clarity if you want to continue carrying the weight, but you answer anyway, "We'll figure it out." You swallow your doubt. You regulate yourself. You find your own gaps because no one else will do that for you anymore.
Ownership. You feel its cost; it stops feeling noble. You realise, it is simply discipline that keeps you going. You realise that the real cost of ownership is, in fact, your doctrine, your grit, your emotional regulation and your ability to ship even on days when it's hard to get out of bed. You set the standard.
And once you realise that, the only question left is: what kind of standard do you want to be?
PAGE: Blog — 12 Notes at 27
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/blog/1227
Date: 20 Aug 2025
Reading time: 3 mins
A late birthday post reflecting on self-discovery at 27, acknowledging that personal growth never truly stops.
I. Leave home before you're ready.
Departing at 17 was unconventional, but stepping from comfort reveals life's broader scope — harsher and more thrilling than anticipated at home. Genuine readiness never arrives; advancement requires departure despite doubt.
II. Don't hate people for looking out for themselves.
Self-focused individuals often lacked external support, developing survival mechanisms. Yet survival can calcify into selfishness, damaging bonds, while excessive selflessness creates depletion. Balance remains the only sustainable foundation.
III. Brutal honesty is mostly brutality.
Cutting remarks disguised as authenticity lack virtue. Genuine transparency includes compassion; otherwise, you're avoiding difficulty, not demonstrating courage.
IV. Make space for wonder.
Life isn't only about fixing, surviving, or achieving. Let yourself be surprised through observation, music, reading, and creative activities. Wonder prevents rigidity.
V. Don't apologise for existing.
Self-erasure helps nobody. Present authenticity matters more than apologetic smallness.
VI. Love needs work.
It isn't permanent. It shifts, it wears out, it needs to be rebuilt again and again. Sustained commitment creates lasting connection.
VII. Walk away when something doesn't love you back.
Self-respect requires departing when care diminishes — from spaces, professions, or locations.
VIII. Stop trying to fix people.
Others aren't incomplete projects. Attempting reconstruction breeds resentment; permit individuals their own developmental timelines.
IX. Believe in yourself, but don't confuse yourself with God.
Confidence enables action; arrogance obscures vision. Humility bridges both.
X. Choose principles, not rules.
Flexible principles navigate chaos better than rigid regulations.
XI. Choose your friends wisely.
Surrounding yourself with inspiring, honest companions shapes character development.
XII. Remember: no feeling is final.
Overwhelming moments pass; emotional states prove temporary, and existence continues beyond despair.
PAGE: Blog — Call it Fate, Call it Karma
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/blog/fatekarma
Date: 28 Oct 2024
Reading time: 3 mins
Today, I saw a nurse praying, and it made me pause. Someone whose life revolves around science and saving lives, praying to something beyond logic, felt like a contradiction, yet it resonated with me. Maybe that's because I've carried the tension between science, fate, and faith for years.
Growing up in a religious household, faith wasn't something I chose, it was something I inherited. My family's devotion surrounded me: images of gods on every wall, prayers before meals, and rituals performed with unwavering belief. As a teenager, I grew sceptical of it all. Still, I didn't realise that my relationship with God quietly persisted, growing in its way. I think it's my grandmother's influence. She raised me; told me stories, read me shloks, and ensured I had a one-on-one conversation with her God every night.
Do I believe in God? My connection with God has always been personal, almost secretive. I think of God as male, un-empathetic, ruthless sometimes, but a protective friend. It's strange how this bond formed. I joke that God has a 3–5 business day turnaround on prayers because I've prayed in my weakest moments, and somehow, life has shifted. For me, God is more abstract — maybe not even a 'He,' but a presence, a force that exists beyond the physical. After my grandmother passed, I realised that it's faith that's kept me dangerously optimistic in an unforgiving world.
I've often wondered, do we shape our lives, or is everything already written? It's the eternal debate: free will or determinism. Are we in control, or are we just following a script? It's hard to tell. If free will exists, then every choice we make matters, our actions shape our future. But if determinism is real, maybe none of our choices matter.
The truth is, life is a bit of both. There are moments when we get to make decisions and moments when life throws things at us that we can't control. I've learned that we don't always choose what happens, but we do decide how we react. The idea that everything happens for a reason is comforting, but not everything needs an explanation. Some things just happen. And it's up to us to find meaning in the mess.
People are often surprised when they find out I'm spiritual. It could be because I can be cynical, questioning everything around me. But I've learned that spirituality doesn't require certainty. It's more about trust, about accepting that we don't have all the answers and maybe we never will.
So, is God real? Does that really matter? Ultimately, I wonder if knowing that is as important as understanding what faith does for us. As Immanuel Kant said, "I had to deny knowledge in order to make room for faith." Maybe that's the point.
Closing: Call it Fate, Call it Karma by The Strokes.
PAGE: Blog — How Branding Brought Me Back to Duolingo Every Single Day
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/blog/duolingo-branding
Date: 1 Aug 2024
Reading time: 3 mins
The author attempted French language learning twice before, abandoning both efforts due to lack of engagement. The third attempt succeeded because of Duolingo's strategic branding approach.
The appeal extends beyond visual design. Duolingo doesn't just teach you a language; it sells a dream. The three-minute lesson format removes friction while maintaining momentum.
Key branding elements discussed:
Gamification mechanics drive recurring engagement. The platform cultivates community through leaderboards and social sharing, creating accountability through streaks and social proof.
Duo, the mascot owl, transcends simple brand mascot status. The character represents a symbol, a reminder, and at times, a meme-worthy taskmaster that balances humour with motivation.
The streaks feature leverages habit psychology to transform lessons into satisfying routines. Widget integration and viral social media content demonstrate effective cross-channel marketing aligned with product design.
Duolingo represents successful integration across marketing, design, and product goals — alignment that becomes palpable to users.
Closing in French: expressing affection for learning French with Duo.
PAGE: Blog — Too Busy for Friendship
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/blog/friendship
Date: 17 May 2024
Reading time: 3 mins
It's a Tuesday afternoon. You're in bed, laptop aglow. Your phone rings and a familiar name flashes across the screen. You hesitate, then decline, firing off a quick text: "Busy, what's up?"
"Nothing important," comes the reply.
"Cool, talk later."
But you never do. Months pass. Then one day, you call them, and they say, "Busy, what's up?"
"Nothing important."
Are we too busy for casual chats these days? Or do we simply need to remember how to relax and talk on the phone?
I grew up in the simpler era of landlines when spending six hours with my best friend at school wasn't enough. We'd still call each other and dissect every mundane detail of our day. What did we even talk about, those endless hours? Now, as two women in our late twenties, both immersed in demanding careers, we're thrilled to even get a text back.
The dynamics of friendships change as technology evolves. Sharing relatable memes has become the new way to show our friends we're thinking of them. Is this having a positive or negative impact on society? That's a debate for another day.
There's this relentless pressure to be "busy" these days. But what is "busy," really? I suspect it's often a convenient mask. An excuse to avoid our feelings. It's easier to hide behind work than to deal with real life. We fill our days with notifications and to-do lists, mistaking motion for meaning. We're so busy running that we barely have time for the people who matter most. Then wonder why I am feeling so fucking empty on a Tuesday evening? Maybe I should have picked up that phone call… but what would I even say when my life feels like a never-ending work sprint?
(A brief interlude: This is for my friends. You are my chosen family. You know who you are. Thank you for always having my back, even when I'm not calling back. And as long as I am alive, you'll always have someone proud of you.)
Friends are the family we choose for ourselves. You fight, you make up, and you occasionally want to strangle each other with your bare hands. You feel loved and sometimes hurt when they don't have time for you. You will inevitably feel alone in this vast, indifferent universe. But when you're done wallowing in self-pity, remember that your neighbour is probably going through the same thing. So choose friends who don't feel like work, tell you the truth (even when it hurts), and make you feel easy to love.
Friendship comes in many forms, each one unique. There are childhood friends who remember that embarrassing thing you did in seventh grade, college friends who saw you through those awkward formative years, the neighbours you chat with in your nearby kirana, work friends who bond over shared frustrations, and online friends who get your weirdest obsessions. Each connection is unique and impossible to quantify or compare.
I have a simple rule that has served me well:
"If I can't tell my friends about it, I shouldn't be doing it."
It's a testament to the power of vulnerability and the importance of having people in your life who will call you on your bullshit. Trust me, I've been on the receiving end of a few interventions myself.
So, don't just send a text the next time your phone rings and it's a friend. Pick up the damn phone and say hello. It might be precisely what you need.
PAGE: Blog — Modern Dating and the Illusion of Options
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/blog/moderndating
Date: 31 Jan 2024
Reading time: 5 mins
It's 11 a.m., and you're sitting alone in a cafe, trying to read your book. A girl walks by. She goes directly to the bar and asks for a blueberry cheesecake. You put your book down and notice her taking it to her table, enjoying it by herself. You wonder if you should ask her for her time, but she seems so happy with her cheesecake, so you decide not to. You try to read your book again, but you can't focus. You feel an urge to talk to her, so you gather all your courage. You leave the book on the table, gulp your espresso, fix your shirt, walk up to her, and ask for her name. She looks at you with big, wide eyes and introduces herself. She invites you to sit next to her, and you have a conversation that keeps you immersed. It's thrilling, but not in the 'I met my soulmate' way; more in the 'I had a good time' way. She checks her watch. You worry that you've taken up too much of her time. You politely ask for her number, and she gives it to you. That night, you lie in bed, replaying the conversation. You remember how she laughed when she realised you both were wearing the same shoes. You take out your phone and message her, "Hey." What a rewarding feeling! How hopeful. How romantic.
What I like about this imaginative piece is that it involves a phone at the very end. You think of her and your hopeful future together. She might be your soulmate, or not, but that doesn't matter. What matters is that you know the reward you received is because of your efforts.
Imagine you had a tough day at work. You come home, change into your pyjamas, watch your comforting TV show, and have dinner. You remember that you need to order vegetables for tomorrow. While the TV show plays in the background, you open Instamart and add some vegetables to your cart. Then, you get a notification from Amazon. The headset you've been wanting for months is finally at the price you want. You click on it. Thirty minutes later, you find yourself looking at 52-inch TV options. You don't need it, but it would be nice to have. Now, you feel overwhelmed by the decisions you have to make. You find yourself scrolling through Instagram reels, losing track of time.
Suddenly, you realise how late it is. You decide to focus on ordering the vegetables. Now the store's closed. It's late at night. You're feeling lonely. You install Hinge, an app designed to be deleted, as their marketing says. How hopeful. You create your profile and start swiping. You match with some girls. You're talking to five of them at the same time. Most of them think, "You're super cute." Suddenly, your height, sun sign, and face matter. Things that you have no control over. You feel powerful yet at the mercy of these girls. You remember that if they had the power to reject you, so did you. It was equitable.
Out of the five you're currently speaking to, one piques your interest. You ask her out for coffee, and she agrees. You meet. It's awkward at first because she doesn't look as pristine as in her photographs. You realised the importance of lighting that day. You wonder if she, too, is noticing your flaws more. You order your espresso, and she orders a blueberry cheesecake. Although you judge her 11 a.m. cheesecake order, it is an immersive conversation. She makes you notice that you both are wearing the same shoes, and you share a genuine laugh with her. The date is not bad. She looks at her watch, and you realise she has to be elsewhere. You both politely say your goodbyes. Your auto arrives. Given the traffic in Bangalore, you spend the next forty-odd minutes swiping. How anti-climatic.
In the modern day of online dating, the illusion of options that I speak about is the very fact that it is an illusion. You will never be completely captivated by someone anymore. People have preconceived notions about how the date should go and how they should look. But people are people; they are not static images. They can only look perfect when the light falls on their faces in the right places. This perfection occurs only in those milliseconds. There will always be the notion in the back of your mind that perhaps the next one will be better. You do not have the courage to walk up to a girl in the physical realm. But now, you have access to millions of girls in every part of the world in the digital realm. It is a sweet deal, but is it the best one?
I want to make it clear that I'm not saying whether it's right or wrong. I'm merely sharing my observations. There's no dilemma, no solution, because there is no problem. Maybe this works for you and helps with your loneliness. It is interesting to have different meals with different people, I can't deny that. But if you see yourself as a hopeless romantic looking for 'the one,' I'm sorry to say that the chances are very slim.
We do hear success stories of people finding love online, which gives us hope. Wanting to fall in love is a strong desire. We constantly expose ourselves to odes to love in songs, films, and books. It's all around us. Even in a horror film, the hero first falls in love. We condition ourselves to believe that love is everything. As if a chemical must be released in our brains when we see 'the one.' I call bullshit on that.
In my very limited experience, allow me to share my perspective on love and dating. If you can have a conversation without checking your phone or swiping, that's a good start. Remember, beauty doesn't last forever. What's the point of a pretty face if they don't stimulate your mind? Does height matter? And what if he's a Scorpio? Love doesn't happen instantly. The act of falling in love is an enchanting but slow process. I would go so far as to say that if they don't make your heart race on the very first date, that's a very good sign. They're not making you feel anxious. Don't base your idea of love on movies or even this. Let it happen. Don't anticipate it or try to predict it. If it's meant to happen, nothing can stop it.
It feels more rewarding when you put in the effort. So respect yourself, your time, and your energy. Your time on this planet is finite. Do you want to spend it always looking for something better? Or do you want to relish the present moment?
All you have is now, so make the most of your time. That's all.
PAGE: Bookshelf
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/bookshelf
Description
"Books that stayed long after being closed. What she is currently reading, what's next, and the ones worth recommending to anyone who'll listen."
Currently Reading
Man's Search For Meaning by Victor E. Frankl
Next on Shelf
Something's Off by Virgil Abloh
Recommendations
Range by David Epstein
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Read Write Own by Chris Dixon
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak
Looking for Alaska by John Green
The Immortals of Meluha by Amish
PAGE: Things
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/things
Description
A curated collection of objects worth owning. Things worth gifting, collecting, or simply admiring. A running list of objects I find interesting.
PAGE: Food Map
URL: https://www.shreyaganeriwala.com/food
Description
Personal food map featuring places worth revisiting, curated by someone devoted to eating.
Headline
"There's nothing better in life than food cooked for you by someone else."
Cities
Bangalore, India (Google Maps link)
Mumbai, India (Google Maps link)
SITE-WIDE FOOTER
© Shreya Ganeriwala 2026. All Rights Reserved.
Twitter: https://x.com/shre_no
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreyaganeriwala/
Email: hello@shreyaganeriwala.com