Social networking sites have created an eco-system for content producers and consumers. Content, viewership and number of followers are now turning out to be tangible assets.
Take the example of Abrar and Shahruk, two brothers from Hyderabad were popular in their own social circles for their quirky comic timing but over the last 2 years, they have become an international phenomenon. It started as an experiment to produce comic videos inspired by uniquely Hyderabadi lingo.Today, their Youtube channel delivers snippets like a Hyderabadi take on Bollywood songs.
"The audience base generated through youtube gave us much required motivation to go ahead and make a movie. In fact, the opening for the movie has also been very encouraging,” says Abrar khan.
The business of vlogging, however, is not restricted to fun stuff. Serious matters are also good business, as Vikas Rachamalla found out. An IT professional by night and a vlogger by day, this bike enthusiast started putting up videos shot using a gopro camera attached to his helmet.
This has since evolved to bike reviews and riding tips making him around USD 700 a month, and one of India's top 5 most-viewed bike vloggers.
“That is exactly what viewers ask us for they do not want high production value content but true reviews when they are spending so much money on bikes. It feels good when people trust you and you are doing what you like,” says Rachamalla.
For others like 23-year old Jahnavi, video-blogs are a way to turn a dream into reality. A student of fashion design with a desire to act, she started with videos portraying her take on the life of a middle-class Telugu girl. This evolved into a series called Mahathalli, which has the Tollywood taking notice.
"Now I have started getting movie offers. I am being choosy though. Most importantly, I get recognized when i am in public which is way too fancy," she says.
The money is not the biggest draw -- it's making money while having fun and doing what you like best, without too much capital.
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