How ChatGPT Became A Kitchen Aid, Teacher And ‘Pandit Ji’ To My 50-Year-Old Aunt

For Preeti (name changed), my 50-year-old aunt who is a homemaker from Delhi, Artificial Intelligence wasn't a tech revolution she saw on the news. She wasn’t looking to become "tech-savvy," nor was she interested in the latest trends. For her, AI simply arrived as a quiet helper that solved small, everyday problems. It started with avoiding sticky phone screens while cooking and evolved into a tool that helped her connect with her son. Slowly, the app moved from being a stranger on her phone to a daily companion. “It never felt like using technology,” Preeti says, “It just felt like getting help.” Here is how one Delhi mother integrated AI into her traditional household life.Speaking Over TypingThe bridge between Preeti and this new technology wasn’t a complex

tutorial, but the discovery of the Hindi Voice Mode. Like many of her generation, she found typing in English slow and typing in Hindi cumbersome, often acting as a barrier to exploring new apps. But discovering she could simply talk to the app changed everything. “My English typing is slow, and typing Hindi is difficult, but speaking is natural,” she explains. By removing the need to type, the app stopped feeling like a machine and started feeling like a neighbour she could chat with, giving her the confidence to invite AI into different corners of her life.

The Hands-Free Kitchen CompanionThe first noticeable change happened in the kitchen, where Preeti had previously relied on YouTube for recipes, a process she found messy and frustrating. She recalled how her phone screen was always sticky from pausing videos with wet hands or trying to skip ads while onions were burning. One day, she asked ChatGPT for a restaurant-style Paneer Makhani recipe in Hindi and instead of a wall of text, it spoke to her step-by-step. Hearing instructions like “Ab masale ko bhuniye jab tak tel alag na ho jaye” (Fry the spices until the oil separates) kept her calm. “I didn’t panic even once,” she says. “It spoke like someone standing next to me in the kitchen.”A Digital ‘Pandit Ji’ And Private TutorBeyond the kitchen, the tool quickly evolved into a reliable source of information, solving the confusion she often faced with religious dates. Previously, searching for festival timings like Ekadashi or Poornima on Google led to conflicting results, forcing her to call relatives for confirmation. Now, she simply asks the AI in Hindi for the exact timing, describing it as having a “Pandit ji” in her pocket.ChatGPT also helped Preeti bridge a gap at home. When her 23-year-old son told her he was pursuing a course in Generative AI, she smiled and encouraged him, even though she didn’t understand what it meant. “The moment he left the room, I didn’t Google,” she said. “I asked ChatGPT in Hindi to explain it simply.” The explanation helped her understand the basics without technical language. “Next time he talks about his future, I won’t just nod,” she said. “I’ll actually understand.”Preeti also described how ChatGPT replaced uncomfortable moments of asking family members about words or concepts she didn’t understand. “Sometimes people say, ‘Oh, you don’t know this?’” she said. “Here, there is no judgment. I can ask anything.” Whether it was an English word or a banking term, she could learn quietly and confidently.

From Forwarding To CreatingThis newfound confidence eventually unlocked a creative side Preeti rarely expressed. On major festivals like Diwali or Republic Day, she used to be a passive participant, simply forwarding images she received in family WhatsApp groups. This year, she decided to make her own, asking the tool to create a picture with a diya and rangoli. When she posted the unique image as her status, friends asked where she downloaded it. “It felt like I made it,” she says proudly.For Preeti, the journey wasn’t about mastering complex code; it was about finding simplicity. She didn't have to change who she was to use the technology; the technology adapted to her. She concluded by saying, “ChatGPT didn’t make me modern, it just made my life easier.”