Merriam-Webster chose the term “blog” as the top word of 2004, thousands of new blogs were being created every day, but in India, blogging was relatively an unknown phenomenon.

When I quit my job with a software company to become a professional blogger, most people (mom included) won’t really understand what I was doing on the internet all the time. But things are so different now. More and more Indians are jumping the blogging bandwagon.

And it’s not just limited to geeks or IT guys, you will find students, housewives, teachers, journalists, grandpa’s and even working professionals in India who are into blogging or at least reading other blogs.

For me, the year 2006 was a turning point – the traffic originating from India grew steadily, I could connect with so many interesting and like-minded people using the power of blog conversations, and unlike previous years, it became relatively easy to monetize blogs since companies are increasingly going online to showcase their products and services.

I got a chance to speak at a few blogging conferences in India this year and the response was overwhelming. It feels good when you find people considering blogs as an alternative career to regular day jobs or even a side-hobby that can help them pay a few bills.

The entry barrier is extremely low and you won’t find a better platform to share your thoughts and opinions to the whole world. Write something unique that comes from your heart and rest everything follows. [For HT New Year Edition]