I keep big systems from breaking.
Then I build silly ones.
SHUBHAM / BACKEND ENGINEERWORK / DATING APP INFRASTRUCTURESIDE PROJECTS / MOSTLY JOKES
I work on the backend of one of India's biggest dating apps: databases, data pipelines, migrations. Before I change anything, I map how it all fits together and find where it's likely to fail.
How I’m
wired
Each box is a part of how I think and work. The lines show what feeds into what.Diagram of how Shubham is wired, as a list. Each item names a node and what it connects to.
- Shubham (me): Backend engineer at one of India's biggest dating apps. Everything else on this diagram feeds into this box. — connected to Big picture first (thinks first), Senku, Dr. Stone (inspired by), Competitive programming (trained by), Short answers (speaks in), Bad actors (defends against), Sense of humour (holds it all up)
- Big picture first (how I work): Before I touch anything, I draw the whole thing: every database, every pipeline, every handoff. Then I look for the place it will break first. — connected to Shubham (thinks first), Free tier only (limits)
- Free tier only (constraint): My side projects run on free infrastructure only. The limit makes the problem more interesting, like a crossword. — connected to Big picture first (limits)
- Senku, Dr. Stone (role model): The scientist from the anime Dr. Stone. Methodical, unsentimental, and rebuilds civilisation from scratch with a plan and a grin. His catchphrase: — connected to Shubham (inspired by), Manga (found via)
- Manga (reads): Where Senku came from. I read a lot of it. — connected to Senku, Dr. Stone (found via)
- Competitive programming (background): Years of competitive programming. I like problems that have one clean, correct answer. — connected to Shubham (trained by)
- Short answers (how I talk): I say less than people expect. I'd rather be precisely wrong and get corrected than vaguely right and get nodded at. — connected to Shubham (speaks in)
- Bad actors (day job): My work touches trust and safety: scammers, spam, fake profiles. Someone is always actively trying to beat the system. I like that there's an opponent. — connected to Shubham (defends against), Sense of humour (same kind of puzzle)
- Sense of humour (holds it up): The jokes aren't a side thing. Same instinct as the engineering: find how something is built, then push on it until it's absurd. — connected to Shubham (holds it all up), Bad actors (same kind of puzzle), Wordle (daily)
- Wordle (daily): Every day. No exceptions. — connected to Sense of humour (daily)