This week for Friday Follow, we have a look at Indian content creator Prasad Vidhate and his content journey.
If there is something that should never be an option but a necessity in our lives, it is 'entertainment, entertainment and entertainment.' Gladly for the audience, the lack of ways to entertain us will never be an issue. With OTT platforms becoming our personal theatres, we also have our phones and various platforms on this small screen giving common people like us a chance to show all the crazy, funny and entertaining sides of the world. One such talent who has benefitted by getting a chance to reach a wider audience and show off his love for acting is Prasad Vidhate. The creator has become a household name with his creative and quick-witted content leaving the audience wanting for more.
For someone who has been part of showbiz in some way or the other, he has been making sure to continue exploring this world by contributing in anyway possible. Managing to churn out stories, Prasad has been able to tickle our funny bones.
Prasad is a civil engineer with a Masters's degree in construction management who has always been passionate about performing and being on stage. It was this love that encouraged him to join the theatre life in 2010. The love for this new world only expanded his need to try things to do and find his base. Over the years he has directed plays, advertisements, worked as a freelance video editor as well as a background dancer from 2016 to 2017. After trying out everything he got into content creation and decided to dedicate his creative talent on the short-video platforms. He left his full-time video editor job in an Edutech company and decided to pursue content creation full-time in 2021.
Talking about his journey from being a theatre kid to creating digital content, Prasad says, "I had been doing theatre for a while and I was just loving it. I worked with almost 5 youtube channels but it wasn’t enough to keep me financially stable. I still continued to do plays in Pune but it was difficult to make money from that as well." He then went on to start his own youtube channel in 2016. The one simple thought that fueled his want to start his own channel was the idea of how 'rather than bring the audience to theatres, he would reach out to the audience through their phones.' All we can say is this thought worked quite well for him. He dedicated himself to create his own little stories by sharing regular youtube videos and thus began his content creation journey.
One thing that always remains constant and is also a major inspiration behind his witty videos is his love for Bollywood. Films hold an important place in our hearts and there is no day that goes by where we don't quote a dialogue or reference a real life incident with a scene from a movie. Prasad has done his best to churn this out in his everyday videos. "So, my friends and I converse a lot with each in movie references and dialogues, because all of us love watching movies and web series." He recalls how he decided to randomly performed a scene from the movie Padmavaat while they were chilling. The video was a surprise hit and went viral, reaching 1.8 million. That very day he recognised the power of movies and its love amongst the people and wrote 5 scripts. He added, "So yes movies have definitely inspired me as an actor, as a director and now as a content creator."
He is among the many creators who started his journey creating long-form videos and now is a major part of the short-video platform creating Reels. Creating a story within 15 seconds and engaging the audiences to come back to their page is not as easy and simple as it may sound. A bunch of people have started experimenting and trying their hand at this new form of content. It has changed the way comedy is consumed. Prasad is well aware of all the changes that has happened in the entertainment industry over the last few years. "I have now created more than 200 videos and gone through the comment sections, and the analytics and do a lot of experimenting. The process itself has become so polished that the thought in my mind is already the 3rd draft and then it's on paper. And now I think a lot before making any video because I cannot upload anything on social media."
When creating his videos all he has to do is look around to find the stories he is looking for. "The process is simple as I have met a lot of people and experienced a lot." He credits the same to his days in the theatre. He talks about how he was taught that 'everything happening around you is a scene.' The one challenge that he finds while sharing these videos and stories is to make sure he portrays them in a relatable and funny way. According to him, that is something that comes with experience.
"I always keep myself in the viewer’s position and then think of writing anything and that's what has helped a lot in the evolution of my content." He knows that ultimately what separates one from others is their uniqueness. He has also learned a few things or two from his fellow creators. He follows a lot of creators and their content. Doing something eye-catching in short videos is extremely difficult, and it's one thing he has come to learn from these already established content creators. As he puts it, the formula is simple: keep on experimenting and try on doing new things.
Do you follow any Indian creators whose content you enjoy?
Bhuvan Bam and the thing I like about him is his honesty towards his work.
Who are the people that you look up to find inspiration?
My inspiration since childhood has been Shahrukh Khan and Jackie Chan. The amount of effort, dedication, and hard work they put into their movies are commendable. The authenticity they show towards their work and kindness towards their fans is what I admire about them.
A quote that always motivates you.
I remember a speech of SRK in which he said - “koyi bhi kaam itni mehnat aur lagan se karo ki uss kaam ko fakra ho ki aapne usse kiya hai”. This is incredibly inspiring to me. My father also told me a similar thing and seeing his dedication made it more pertinent.
Have you received any DM from your followers that stayed with you?
Yes, I remember this particular DM which read- “I sent your videos to my mom and dad and they loved your videos a lot. It's good to see that your content does not contain any foul language``.- and that just made my day.
If you had to describe what your hopes for 2022?
It has been a year since I started making videos on Instagram and now I want to work on a serious long-length OTT web series, want to grow my Instagram family and I want to start creating some long-length content on YouTube and I am working on it. I hope 2022 will bless me with it.
Do follow Prasad for all your daily dose of masaledar and funny content.
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