India Influence Archives

Shivesh Bhatia | Top 100 | Influncex’20

Ex: Tell us about a change you’ve seen in the digital blogging space since you started out your journey? How has this space evolved?

Shivesh: I have seen the influencer and blogging industry completely revolutionize in the past couple of years. When I started off, Instagram was already providing a space to experiment with newer content. Eventually, it bloomed like anything. The digital blogging space enabled brands to have real time engagement and simultaneously increase brand awareness. This space literally becomes more innovative every single day now. We have wonderfully transitioned from static content to more engaging and more dynamic content. People have really started to believe in influencer marketing and it is the new ‘in thing’ in the digital marketing industry. I have loved this process because the creative powers have now shifted from the hands of advertising agencies to independent individuals.

Ex: Can you give us an insight into social media platforms that only an Influencer can know?

Shivesh: Often, people have the perception that being an influencer is an easy task. But, churning out content on a constant basis requires endless hours of ideation with my team, planning shoots, researching about newer and more public-friendly content, endless to and fro with brands and organizations, and so much more. We end up not having a 9 to 5 job but one that requires 24 hours of our energies. But at the end of the day, I absolutely love what I do and love creating, so I do not mind this one bit.

Ex: What would be your calling in a parallel universe? (Alternate career options)

Shivesh: I have always loved anything related to mass communication, media, and related aspects. I even enrolled in Indian Institute of Mass Communication after completing my graduation. So, if I didn’t have Bake with Shivesh, I would definitely be a part of the world of Media.

Ex: If you were stranded on an island, what are the 3 gadgets you’d take along?

Shivesh: I’d definitely take my phone, a power-bank, and a lighter to help me start some fires! A technology you wished you’d invented? Air pods, I think? They’re uber cool and have really made life 100% easier and convenient!

Ex: What’s been your favorite encounter with a fan so far? (DMs included!)

Shivesh: There was one time when I had a workshop and a 60 year old very sweet woman came from a distance to meet me. She ended up telling me that I remind her of her grandson and this is by far the sweetest encounter I have ever had with a fan. Social Media is known to expose vulnerabilities, with influencers being at the epicenter.

Ex: How do you deal with the dark side that comes with the medium?

Shivesh: I think Baking is the perfect form of therapy for me. Sometimes, when I need an off from everything, I bake for myself or enjoy some ‘me-time’ with my movies, popcorn, and good food! Social media trolling is seeing an upward rise.

Ex: Do you think this only increases with the popularity of an Influencer? How does one tackle this situation?

Shivesh: Trolling is not limited to influencers with a huge following, it happens with budding bloggers and of course, even with celebrities. The best way to deal with it is to just block out the negativity. In the comments section, even one bad comment can really affect someone. My way is to see the many other positive comments and not allow one to affect me.

Ex: What does success mean to you?

Shivesh: Success to me means always having the opportunity to do what I love and what makes me happy. I feel successful when I post a recipe and I see people instantly trying it out, using the recipe to celebrate occasions and what not!

Ex: Do you think Influencer Marketing is a fad? Where do you see this space in years to come?

Shivesh: Influencer marketing is anything but a fad. It’s the fastest growing space in the digital marketing industry and it promises the greatest ROIs to major organizations. Sure, like every industry, it will take a turn here and there, evolve to become even bigger, but it’s not a fire that can be put out quickly.

Ex: Which is that one dish or cuisine that you haven’t tried yet but are looking forward to?

Shivesh: I really am looking forward to trying some Armenian food! I heard it’s super great and I’d absolutely love to give it a try What do you do to make your content unique from others? I think my style of food photography allows me to make my content unique and appealing. I invest proper time in setting up a particular set for my desserts and give the production process the attention it requires. Besides this, I love how I am able to churn out content on YouTube which has recipes that are super easy yet delicious!

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Ritik Jain | Top 100 | Influncex’20

Ex: Tell us about a change you’ve seen in the digital blogging space since you started out your journey? How has this space evolved?

Ritik: The opportunity in the digital space is seen as a career and has picked up since I started the creator journey, specially in the space of gaming.

Ex: Can you give us an insight into social media platforms that only an Influencer can know?

Ritik: Content Creation is a full time job. In which you are active 24/7 to keep up with the expectation of the audience and provide quality content.

Ex: What would be your calling in a parallel universe? (Alternate career options)

Ritik: I am passionate about gaming and if not a game streamer I would be doing something in the same field, a game developer or maybe a tester.

Ex: If you were stranded on an island, what are the 3 gadgets you’d take along?

Ritik: 1. Satellite Phone 2. Swiss Knife 3. iPad for offline Gaming.

Ex: A technology you wished you’d invented?

Ritik: Search Engine.

Ex: What’s been your favourite encounter with a fan so far? (DMs included!)

Ritik: All the interactions are special, first time fan interaction is something that brought a different experience.

Ex: Social Media is known to expose vulnerabilities, with influencers being at the epicentre. How do you deal with the dark side that comes with the medium?

Ritik: There are always two sides of the coin and you learn that in the process, we get appreciated for the good deeds and are also bashed for our mess ups. If you stay true to your personality, the audience accepts you for who you are and supports you in your ups and downs.

Ex: What does success mean to you?

Ritik: Freedom and love from our fans.

Ex: Do you think Influencer Marketing is a fad? Where do you see this space in years to come?

Ritik: It’s just begun, I am sure it has more to it.

Ex: Which three things do someone starting in the gaming industry need to know?

Ritik: Consistency is the key. Keep trying to stay true to yourself and you will find that you have created a space for yourself.

Ex: What would you say is the biggest challenge for a gaming influencer?

Ritik: Gaming demands speed in content creation, one should be able to create quality content daily to keep up with the standards.

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Abhi and Niyu | Changemaker | Influncex’20

Ex: Tell us about a change you’ve seen in the digital blogging space since you started out your journey? How has this space evolved?

We feel right now people are able to focus more on the content rather than the cosmetic aspects of their art. Because of COVID-19 all the creators are stuck at home and they’re compelled to make content from their homes. Yet, the people who are able to surpass these challenges of these tough times are the ones who stand out.

Ex: Can you give us an insight into social media platforms that only an Influencer can know?

You have to keep experimenting. People think that there’s a formula for being successful on social media but we don’t think there is one. A creator has to keep trying new things and listen to their audience.

Ex: What would be your calling in a parallel universe? (Alternate career options)

Niyu: I would love to be a Marine Biologist as I love being near water. Scuba diving and seeing a whale while underwater is my biggest dream.

Abhi: In a parallel universe I would be a vocalist in a band. I have tried singing and learning musical instruments but I didn’t pursue it sincerely. Music transcends languages and it connects hearts. I would’ve loved to be a musician for sure.

Ex: A technology you wished you’d invented?

If you’re asking about a technology that doesn’t exist in the real world then definitely a time machine.

Ex: What’s been your favorite encounter with a fan so far? (DMs included!)

It’s difficult to pick one because there are so many. Last year, we made a video on Eco-Friendly Ganesh Idols and it was the first video that went truly viral. One of the followers had booked an idol with paint on it, which he didn’t know consists of lead. When we informed him about this, he immediately opted for a paint-free idol. We say “Farak Padta Hai” (It makes a difference) and he truly proved it.

Ex: What does success mean to you?

Freedom – to live the life you want to live
Respect – from the people who matter to us
Integrity – because self-respect matters more than any other respect

Ex: What was the thought process behind this journey?

We wanted to have a voice. We wanted to focus on a solution-based approach to everyday living. We are tired of people complaining all the time about things that are wrong in India. Complaining is easy, but going one step beyond and asking “hum kya kar sakte hain” (what can we do) is hard. It needs thinking, it takes time. We wanted to show that small things can make a difference.

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Malini Agarwal | Top 100 | Influncex’20

Ex: Tell us about a change you’ve seen in the digital blogging space since you started out your journey? How has this space evolved?

Malini: Over the last decade, I have seen it change and evolve so much. People have gone from bloggers influencers to content creators and there are so many different kinds of creators now. It’s quite fantastic to see the range and I’m very happy to have carved a path into this as an actual viable career.

Ex: Can you give us an insight into social media platforms that only an Influencer can know?

Malini: I think the main thing about social media platforms that every influencer should know is that authenticity is absolutely crucial.

Ex: What would be your calling in a parallel universe? (Alternate career options)

Malini: Growing up I always thought I’d be a criminal lawyer because my sister’s a lawyer too!

Ex: A technology you wished you’d invented?

Malini: Pretty much everything but it would be really cool to have invented the internet.

Ex: What’s been your favorite encounter with a fan so far? (DMs included!)

Malini: I was once at this bar called Rasta and a girl came up to me who I’ve never met before and said thank you for Malini’s Girl Tribe because it really helped her get out of was depression after 3 weeks!

Ex: What does success mean to you?

Malini: To me success is happiness there’s no amount of money or fame that can get you happiness so if you’re truly happy then I think that means you are successful in every way.

Ex: Do you think Influencer Marketing is a fad? Where do you see this space in years to come?

Malini: I think influencer marketing is a new reality and I think it’s really resonating with people. I don’t see it going away anytime soon but I do see it evolving.

Ex: What was the thought process behind this journey?

Malini: You know the great thing is that I had no idea and people always ask me how did I build this brand or this career. I actually tried a lot of different things; being a dancer, being an RJ working at MTV and Channel V, and digital content which actually now looking back were all the tools that I needed to be able to start my own entrepreneurial journey. I love this Japanese concept of ‘ikigai’ which means your true passion lies at the center of 4 things: what you love to do, what you’re good at doing, what you can get paid to do and what the world needs.

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Mumbikar Nikhil | Trendsetter | Influncex’20

Ex: Tell us about a change you’ve seen in the digital blogging space since you started out your journey? How has this space evolved?

Nikhil: Changes which I have seen in the digital blogging space that there are so many opportunities have grown a lot and more and more people are coming onto this.

Ex: Can you give us an insight into social media platforms that only an Influencer can know?

Nikhil: The insight which I can give you is that the Influencer who is more personal about their life has more connection with their audience.

Ex: What would be your calling in a parallel universe? (Alternate career options)

Nikhil: I would have been either a Photographer or probably a DOP.

Ex: A technology you wished you’d invented?

Nikhil: Technology I wish I could have invented the Smartphone, It’s a device on which we all rely on and I think it’s the most popular invention in the history of Mankind.

Ex: What’s been your favorite encounter with a fan so far? (DMs included!)

Nikhil: There are many but one is that when I was traveling from Kolkata to Visakhapatnam two boys were standing just before the toll naka and when I spoke to them, they told me they came 200km from inside a village and they just guessed it I would be passing from there because I didn’t update it anywhere. I was really shocked and felt blessed at that time.

Ex: Social media trolling is seeing an upward rise. Do you think this only increases with the popularity of an Influencer? How does one tackle this situation?

Nikhil: Definitely grows with the popularity or I’d like to say Depends on how deep of a personal connection an influencer have with their audience through their content. When you grow, you gotta have bullies and haters. That’s proof you are growing.

Ex: Tell us something we don’t know about the influencer’s content strategy?

Nikhil: One thing people don’t know about the content strategy is that Influencing is not just about to look good, wear good clothes, It’s about talking what needs to be spoken and doing something which people find it challenging and of course you need to be calculative and futuristic what’s gonna happen in the future and accordingly make a move.

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