Commentary: How Social Media Shared Pain and Rage of Mumbai

MUMBAI, India (CNN) -- I celebrated my 42nd birthday on November 26. We were thinking of stepping out for a coffee at the Taj hotel that night when a friend called to say there was a terrorist attack in town.

My first reaction was to switch on the TV and simultaneously go online to Twitter.
There was a lot of confusion, anger and sadness as we witnessed together parts of our city go up in flames -- icons and symbols that stand for the Bombay I grew up in. I live about 8 kilometers from the scenes of the attacks.

Many of us didn't sleep much that night. Some of us have worked together during disasters like the tsunamis and Hurricane Katrina, and we used our influence and experience to get the word out. Our updates and conversations on Twitter kept us connected.

Twitter is a social tool where social networking meets blogging. Many have referred to it as microblogging, as each post -- or "tweet" -- you make is restricted to 140 characters.
We didn't feel alone anymore or scared. Fellow tweeters worldwide were experiencing and sharing in our pain and our anger during the prolonged siege.

Read more: www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/12/02/mehta.mumbai/index.html