We have all laughed and quailed at awkward videos like the one with Esha Deol! Have you ever wondered why awkward and embarrassing videos gain more popularity than the regular ones? Pulkit Kochar helps us analyse in detail and discuss why.
If there’s one video that made it to everyone's Instagram feed a few days ago, it was Esha Deol (actor, not a singer) singing a modified version of the song ‘Kya Dil Ne Kaha’ to promote Tushar Kapoor’s book ‘Bachelor Dad’. The video spread like wildfire on Instagram receiving more than 1.8 million views. Esha's video was posted on December 21, 2021, but it went viral around January 06, 2022. Why? Not because Deol’s voice won hearts but because it got massively trolled. In fact, in the caption, she herself wrote, “(excuse my vocal talents)” along with "#iamnotasinger".
While it’s good publicity and humor alike, this instance does make one wonder whether Deol would receive the same attention had she just put up a simple post promoting the book. For instance, Ekta Kapoor (who has more followers than Deol) put up a post promoting the same book, but it only received 15.2k likes as compared to Deol’s 42k likes. Not only this, but countless videos exist on Instagram, downloaded from TikTok, that are viewed solely for the purpose of trolling. We have all been there, judging sentimental TikTok videos made by teenagers. The question thus arises! Why do videos that get trolled work better than simple posts trying to achieve the same goal?
Perhaps, one of the reasons is that it's easier to relate to awkward videos than those that are glamorous and polished. An Instagram Reel with a designed setup and well-curated content might not be relatable, but something that mimics the thoughts and life of an average person might be relatable for a lot of people. Most of us sing out-of-tune; Esha Deol isn’t the only one.
Resources also add to the equation. For a spoof video, or any regular TikTok video, you do not necessarily require a costly camera with high resolution, a regular cellphone will also do as long as you’re just funny. With this, any of us stand a chance to go viral. Language also acts as a barrier. For a huge part of the population in India, Hindi will always be more convenient than English. Hindi vocabulary, especially Hindi lyrics, are easier to perceive and laugh at when compared to a well-rehearsed stand-up set in English.
Pondering on the humor quotient of it, content creator, Pulkit Kochar, who was one of the few to start sharing Esha Deol's video, comments, “I think our generation's humor is so twisted that we tend to laugh only when the joke is unintentional. A well-rehearsed joke might not make you laugh if you see it coming. However, when it's a cringe video, it takes you by surprise, making you laugh harder. Comedy is a lot about surprise. I feel that you laugh the hardest when you don't see the punchline coming.”
We think that regardless of the humorous trolling and judgments passed, awkward videos are here to stay, to make us laugh on any given day. What do you think? Tell us in the comments below.
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