ITV

Tag: TVF

  • Screenwriters, broadcasters, and digital freedom: ISC’2016

    Screenwriters, broadcasters, and digital freedom: ISC’2016

    MUMBAI: What do we really mean by digital media? When did it start? Why did it start? If you too are concerned about these questions and wanted a detailed insight, the Fourth Indian Screenwiters’ Conference 2016’s session on ‘The Digital Explosion’ was the place to get all your answers. Held last week, it saw writers, producers, film makers, broadcasters get together to discuss the issues plaguing the writing community today.

    The panelists included ‘newcomers’ such as the screenwriter of Masaan, standup comedian and National award winning lyricist Varun Grover, The Viral Fever (TVF) creative director Biswapati Sarkar and Y-Films senior manager Nikhil Taneja, with 16 years experience across broadcast media Youtube India operations head content Satya Raghvan and Mukta Arts strategy vice president and Whistling Woods International business development vice-president Chaitanya Chinchlikar.

    Session moderator and FWA activist and Malamal Weekly and Bhool Bhulaiyya screenwriter Manisha Grover set the ball rolling by asking when did digital writing really start in the Indian context and what sparked it off.

    “We initiated the web series Jay Hind when the internet was in its early stages here but it has grown so rapidly that now we have vanished, says Grover. Jay Hind was a popular Indian stand-up comedy show made exclusively for the internet platform and was launched in 2009.

    Grover recalls the day when he pitched the show to NDTV Imagine. “In those time there were only two comedy shows – Movers and Shakers and Aisi Taisi Democracy – which were also written by me. The broadcasters were very excited about the script. We made the pilot and they loved it and sent it to their focus group. The focus group didn’t like our host as they couldn’t relate to him. The channel asked us to shoot the pilot again with a different host. But it was my arrogance that didn’t allow me to do what the broadcaster wanted me to do.”

    Other writers on the panel to narrated how rejection by broadcasters led them to move on to digital. A move that turned out to be a boon for them as it allowed their ideas to come to fruition as completed episodes for the web.

    “My seniors were pitching a show for which I wrote a few episodes,” recollected Biswapati. “We went to MTV and after reading the script, they said the content is too intelligent for Indian audiences. We didn’t understand what they meant but i guess our timing was better at that time because YouTube was growing and it slightly became easy to make the series. For me digital is not a ‘also’ medium.”

    In the digital world, Youtube is pioneer, which has given a creative platform to many writers, was the consensus of the panel. “I think the big conclusion that we have drawn that digital Youtube is a ‘writers’ first’ platform. It’s probably the only medium where the writer can dictate the entire product that will come out,” added Raghvan.

    Raghvan went on to explain that in the Youtube ecosystem the web series revolution was sparked off over a year and half ago and the biggest series we saw was Permanent Roommates season one which is a TVF product. The latter has also produced some formats but Permanent Roommates was the first finite story. “Till now we have seen 40 series on the platform in different shapes and sizes not only in Hindi but also in Tamil,and Telugu,” revealed Raghvan. “We are also waiting for some Marathi productions this year and people are working on it. We will also start doing this in Bengali in couple of months.”

    Till 2014, in India some 150 million internet connection were there that too from the big metros. Between 2014 -2015 we saw a lot of growth in south India, expounded Raghvan.

    “We are doing shows for a certain kind of audience that is there on the internet. The question that arises is what what can we give to them on the internet that they can’t find on television and in films. Digital is mostly about good writing,” adds Taneja.

    The panel concluded that writers need to hone the fine art of writing for digital, as in the future, it is going to emerge as the medium and not as an “also” medium.

  • TVF to launch Barely Speaking with Arnub

    TVF to launch Barely Speaking with Arnub

    MUMBAI: After creating quite a buzz during its last season two years ago and reviving the talk show culture in India, TVF is all set to launch Season 2 of the most watched online talk show in India – TVF’s innovative, popular, iconic talk show – Barely Speaking with Arnub – later this month.

    Created as a parody to a TV talk show, the first season of Barely Speaking with Arnubfeatured leading actors and political icons – from Shahrukh Khan, Ranveer Singh and Parineeti Chopra to the current New Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal.

    The popular online show was built on the same ideology and premise on which TVF was initially created, which was to deliver great and awesome content for its audiences.TVF entered the niche market of online talk shows in 2014 with Barely Speaking with Arnub. The talk show became an instant hit with audiences not just in India, but across the world, with each episode clocking over 2 million views!

    In the growing age of digital media where branded online content has taken off in a big way, the silver screen has realised the importance of the web. Barely Speaking with Arnub provides a innovative platform not just to films and filmmakers for their pre-release promotions, but, also to celebrities to showcase their human, more natural side to their fans, not just in India, but across the world!

    Arunabh Kumar, CEO and Founder of TVF says, “TV Channels have tried a lot of talks shows and the new millennium has seen several established actors trying their hand at hosting one. This led to all of the talk shows being more or less similar in India. From radio to television to print media, every domain has been tried and tested by celebrities to connect to their audiences, but no medium connects them better than digital. When we wanted to create an online talk show, we knew that no amount of marketing or promotions would help if we don’t create a talk show with a difference. And that’s when we decided to turn the talk show format on its head and conceive it as the ‘toughest host a guest will ever get!’

    In the growing age of digital media, where online content is spreading like wildfire, every popular celebrity has recognised the importance and power of the web. Stars and celebrities want to connect to young viewers and that’s where we have managed to hit the nail with the TVF Brand which everyone loves and deliver a talk show that stands out. And more so, it helps them stand up for something they believe in with a smile. TVF created ‘Barely Speaking with Arnub’ catering to the digital audiences’ taste and helping humanise some of the country’s biggest celebrities. In the scores of interviews that SRK gives for his movie promotions, what audiences remember is ‘Barely Speaking With Arnub’. It is also the most watched online talk show in India. TVF also created history in India by getting a politician on the show and talk to us as one of us. With the 2nd Season of Barely Speaking, we want to help get more celebrities from across the field connect to new age Indians and share what they believe in. And of course the host – Arnub with a U — ensures to keep the viewers and guests smiling!.”

    Biswapati Sarkar, Executive Creative Director, TVF added, “The funny thing about the show is not that we are making fun of celebrities or that we are parodying the existing Indian journalism culture. It is the fact there is a show at all and real life celebrities are appearing in it. This season, we have expanded the Arnub universe featuring new storylines and characters in his life apart from the interviews. I’m having a great time right now working with the writers on the episodes and really excited to play Arnub once again.”

    Catch the Season 2 trailer of Barely Speaking with Arnub here – http://tvfplay.com/257c9a

  • TVF to launch Barely Speaking with Arnub

    TVF to launch Barely Speaking with Arnub

    MUMBAI: After creating quite a buzz during its last season two years ago and reviving the talk show culture in India, TVF is all set to launch Season 2 of the most watched online talk show in India – TVF’s innovative, popular, iconic talk show – Barely Speaking with Arnub – later this month.

    Created as a parody to a TV talk show, the first season of Barely Speaking with Arnubfeatured leading actors and political icons – from Shahrukh Khan, Ranveer Singh and Parineeti Chopra to the current New Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal.

    The popular online show was built on the same ideology and premise on which TVF was initially created, which was to deliver great and awesome content for its audiences.TVF entered the niche market of online talk shows in 2014 with Barely Speaking with Arnub. The talk show became an instant hit with audiences not just in India, but across the world, with each episode clocking over 2 million views!

    In the growing age of digital media where branded online content has taken off in a big way, the silver screen has realised the importance of the web. Barely Speaking with Arnub provides a innovative platform not just to films and filmmakers for their pre-release promotions, but, also to celebrities to showcase their human, more natural side to their fans, not just in India, but across the world!

    Arunabh Kumar, CEO and Founder of TVF says, “TV Channels have tried a lot of talks shows and the new millennium has seen several established actors trying their hand at hosting one. This led to all of the talk shows being more or less similar in India. From radio to television to print media, every domain has been tried and tested by celebrities to connect to their audiences, but no medium connects them better than digital. When we wanted to create an online talk show, we knew that no amount of marketing or promotions would help if we don’t create a talk show with a difference. And that’s when we decided to turn the talk show format on its head and conceive it as the ‘toughest host a guest will ever get!’

    In the growing age of digital media, where online content is spreading like wildfire, every popular celebrity has recognised the importance and power of the web. Stars and celebrities want to connect to young viewers and that’s where we have managed to hit the nail with the TVF Brand which everyone loves and deliver a talk show that stands out. And more so, it helps them stand up for something they believe in with a smile. TVF created ‘Barely Speaking with Arnub’ catering to the digital audiences’ taste and helping humanise some of the country’s biggest celebrities. In the scores of interviews that SRK gives for his movie promotions, what audiences remember is ‘Barely Speaking With Arnub’. It is also the most watched online talk show in India. TVF also created history in India by getting a politician on the show and talk to us as one of us. With the 2nd Season of Barely Speaking, we want to help get more celebrities from across the field connect to new age Indians and share what they believe in. And of course the host – Arnub with a U — ensures to keep the viewers and guests smiling!.”

    Biswapati Sarkar, Executive Creative Director, TVF added, “The funny thing about the show is not that we are making fun of celebrities or that we are parodying the existing Indian journalism culture. It is the fact there is a show at all and real life celebrities are appearing in it. This season, we have expanded the Arnub universe featuring new storylines and characters in his life apart from the interviews. I’m having a great time right now working with the writers on the episodes and really excited to play Arnub once again.”

    Catch the Season 2 trailer of Barely Speaking with Arnub here – http://tvfplay.com/257c9a

  • TVF partners Furlenco in ‘Truth Or Dare With Dad’

    TVF partners Furlenco in ‘Truth Or Dare With Dad’

    MUMBAI:  While the world is raving about Huffington Post’s digital video series ‘Talk To Me’ that urges children to interview their parents, India’s own digital content and web series pioneer TVF has come up with its own variant of the same, only with an added dose of laughter. Calling it an infomercial, The Viral Fever has partnered with furniture rental brand Furlenco to launch ‘Truth or Dare with Dad’.

    Truth or Dare with Dad is a hilarious sketch between father and son and friend, as they go through a grueling fun game of Truth or Dare.  Starring everyone’s favorite from the TVF team, Jitendra Kumar (lovingly known as Jeetu!) enjoy the infomercial as Jeetu teaches his Dad the game and learns many a new thing along the way!

    Commenting on the launch, Furlenco CEO and founder  Ajith Mohan Karimpana said, “TVF is an immensely popular youth-centric digital content platform in our country, which boasts of more than 15,00,000 viewers. The idea of launching an infomercial with TVF came from a simple thought of introducing Furlenco to the youth of this city as well as all the other metropolitan cities, who are also our target group. We aim to make aspirations of Pune’s aspirers more accessible by providing premium designer furniture on rent. They can now Have Everything and Buy Nothing.”

    Having pioneered the web series genre in India and created two very successful web series Permanent Roommates and Pitchers,  The Viral Fever (TVF) ‘s founder Arunabh Kumar added, “Furlenco has made lives of young working professionals simpler without burning a hole in their pockets. As the fan base of TVF is primarily the youth – this collaboration was really exciting for us.”

    Truth or Dare with Dad is written by Chandan Kumar and directed by Raghav Subbu from Team TVF.

  • TVF partners Furlenco in ‘Truth Or Dare With Dad’

    TVF partners Furlenco in ‘Truth Or Dare With Dad’

    MUMBAI:  While the world is raving about Huffington Post’s digital video series ‘Talk To Me’ that urges children to interview their parents, India’s own digital content and web series pioneer TVF has come up with its own variant of the same, only with an added dose of laughter. Calling it an infomercial, The Viral Fever has partnered with furniture rental brand Furlenco to launch ‘Truth or Dare with Dad’.

    Truth or Dare with Dad is a hilarious sketch between father and son and friend, as they go through a grueling fun game of Truth or Dare.  Starring everyone’s favorite from the TVF team, Jitendra Kumar (lovingly known as Jeetu!) enjoy the infomercial as Jeetu teaches his Dad the game and learns many a new thing along the way!

    Commenting on the launch, Furlenco CEO and founder  Ajith Mohan Karimpana said, “TVF is an immensely popular youth-centric digital content platform in our country, which boasts of more than 15,00,000 viewers. The idea of launching an infomercial with TVF came from a simple thought of introducing Furlenco to the youth of this city as well as all the other metropolitan cities, who are also our target group. We aim to make aspirations of Pune’s aspirers more accessible by providing premium designer furniture on rent. They can now Have Everything and Buy Nothing.”

    Having pioneered the web series genre in India and created two very successful web series Permanent Roommates and Pitchers,  The Viral Fever (TVF) ‘s founder Arunabh Kumar added, “Furlenco has made lives of young working professionals simpler without burning a hole in their pockets. As the fan base of TVF is primarily the youth – this collaboration was really exciting for us.”

    Truth or Dare with Dad is written by Chandan Kumar and directed by Raghav Subbu from Team TVF.

  • Kingfisher to launch Pitchers app to answer all nightlife queries

    Kingfisher to launch Pitchers app to answer all nightlife queries

    MUMBAI: Acknowledging the power of digital, United Beverage’s flagship alcobev brand Kingfisher is all set to launch an aggregator cum classified app targeting urban nightlife. The beverage giant couldn’t have come up with a better name than ‘Pitchers’, hence giving a recall  to its brand association with TVF’s popular web series ‘Pitchers’ which had Kingfisher as sponsors.

    While addressing a summit at Goafest 2016, United Beverages Limited marketing SVP Samar Singh Sheikhawat announced the app, “Our consumers are constantly on the lookout for fun exciting nightlife destinations, and often that information is not curated and presented to them in a sensible manner. This app will be a one stop shop for them for any night life related queries — it could be about pubs, clubs, a fancy eating joint or places with live gigs.”

    Expected to be available at the Google Play store within the next five days with a soft launch in Bengaluru, Sheikhawat shared that the app would compete with the likes of Zomato and Foodpanda, with focus on nightlife being its key differentiating factor. Sheikhawat revealed that Kingfisher was eyeing Delhi and Mumbai next for the launch (in no particular order).

    “The app will share the entire listing of all the restaurants and pubs, provided that they have a liquor license, unlike Zomato. It will answer frequently asked questions about ‘what is the dress code’, ‘what are the charges as couple, singles and stags, ‘will there be valet parking services or not’, ‘how long will the happy hours be’, ‘What is the music going to be like,’ and if ‘the place has an open smoking zone,” etc.

    Since Pitchers would be a free app, Sheikhawat explained the revenue model, “We don’t need to make money out of this app. We are into the beer business. This is one of the many ways to reach out to our modern age digitally enabled consumer. We will definitely keep an eye out and see how it evolves into something that can be cashed later.”

    Sheikhawat also shared that his company  is open to forming commercial deals with local F&B players, be it SMEs  or five star, who would like to be showcased on the platform. However, his short term goal is to create a buzz around the app’s utility amongst the company’s consumers. The brand would also ensure that the access to the app is age restricted due to the content that will be showcased on it.

    Revealing the marketing and promotion details of  new app Sheikhawat said Kingfisher would be careful, “We want to launch the app, get user feedback,  fix bugs and explore possibilities and then market it to the masses based on our analytics of sometimes’ worth of use. We can create a song and dance around it anytime we want to, but we would rather iron out all issues before talking about Pitchers.”

    With Vijay Mallya making recent headlines for all the wrong reasons, it was inevitable to ask how that affected brand Kingfisher and UBL in general. ”Throughout this time we haven’t seen our shares take a dip. UBL is a completely different entity and a brand on its own. And with Heineken owning 44 per cent stake, we aren’t really worried,” Sheikhawat clarified before signing off.

  • Kingfisher to launch Pitchers app to answer all nightlife queries

    Kingfisher to launch Pitchers app to answer all nightlife queries

    MUMBAI: Acknowledging the power of digital, United Beverage’s flagship alcobev brand Kingfisher is all set to launch an aggregator cum classified app targeting urban nightlife. The beverage giant couldn’t have come up with a better name than ‘Pitchers’, hence giving a recall  to its brand association with TVF’s popular web series ‘Pitchers’ which had Kingfisher as sponsors.

    While addressing a summit at Goafest 2016, United Beverages Limited marketing SVP Samar Singh Sheikhawat announced the app, “Our consumers are constantly on the lookout for fun exciting nightlife destinations, and often that information is not curated and presented to them in a sensible manner. This app will be a one stop shop for them for any night life related queries — it could be about pubs, clubs, a fancy eating joint or places with live gigs.”

    Expected to be available at the Google Play store within the next five days with a soft launch in Bengaluru, Sheikhawat shared that the app would compete with the likes of Zomato and Foodpanda, with focus on nightlife being its key differentiating factor. Sheikhawat revealed that Kingfisher was eyeing Delhi and Mumbai next for the launch (in no particular order).

    “The app will share the entire listing of all the restaurants and pubs, provided that they have a liquor license, unlike Zomato. It will answer frequently asked questions about ‘what is the dress code’, ‘what are the charges as couple, singles and stags, ‘will there be valet parking services or not’, ‘how long will the happy hours be’, ‘What is the music going to be like,’ and if ‘the place has an open smoking zone,” etc.

    Since Pitchers would be a free app, Sheikhawat explained the revenue model, “We don’t need to make money out of this app. We are into the beer business. This is one of the many ways to reach out to our modern age digitally enabled consumer. We will definitely keep an eye out and see how it evolves into something that can be cashed later.”

    Sheikhawat also shared that his company  is open to forming commercial deals with local F&B players, be it SMEs  or five star, who would like to be showcased on the platform. However, his short term goal is to create a buzz around the app’s utility amongst the company’s consumers. The brand would also ensure that the access to the app is age restricted due to the content that will be showcased on it.

    Revealing the marketing and promotion details of  new app Sheikhawat said Kingfisher would be careful, “We want to launch the app, get user feedback,  fix bugs and explore possibilities and then market it to the masses based on our analytics of sometimes’ worth of use. We can create a song and dance around it anytime we want to, but we would rather iron out all issues before talking about Pitchers.”

    With Vijay Mallya making recent headlines for all the wrong reasons, it was inevitable to ask how that affected brand Kingfisher and UBL in general. ”Throughout this time we haven’t seen our shares take a dip. UBL is a completely different entity and a brand on its own. And with Heineken owning 44 per cent stake, we aren’t really worried,” Sheikhawat clarified before signing off.

  • From online fandom to offline craze: YouTube Fan Fest 2016

    From online fandom to offline craze: YouTube Fan Fest 2016

    MUMBAI: Starstruck would be the right word to describe the thousands of fans who came to enjoy the YouTube Fan Fest 2016 which went live on 18 March 2016 at the NSCI in Mumbai. It was nothing short of a big ticket award show or a concert where your favourite rock star makes an appearance, with YouTube Stars setting the red carpet on fire, which was organised for first time in this year. And rightly so! With over millions of subscribers and several contracts to their name, YouTubers like TVF, AIB, Kanan Gill, Superwoman, and Connor Franta are nothing short of celebrities in this digital age.

    The Red Carpet

    The day was marked with high tension and excitement amongst the audience which took to the streets to show love for favourite YouTubers. Flashing cameras, selfie sticks and screaming fans were a common sight. Hundreds of teens, preteens and twenty somethings were seen flocking the space, trying to get a glimpse or maybe a photo or even get lucky and shake hands with their favourite star. The YouTubers also didn’t lose any chance to shower their fans with attention and clicked several selfies and signed many autographs for them.

    Opening with EDM

    By the time the fanfare outside settled down, the theatre inside was already packed with the audience, with everyone waiting for the stellar action to begin with EDM king Nucleya’s performance. And what a performance it was! As the familiar beats exploded through the auditorium, people were seen bobbing up and down on their seats, unable to contain their excitement. The sound was well produced, and the technical team made sure there was no jarring at the low base notes. Nucleya played a medley of his top tracks – Street Boy, Laung Gawacha, Akkad Bakkad, and many more, and the familiar dance beats got the audience off their seats. He was soon joined onstage by his rapper Naezy and Abish Mathew who also surprised everyone with his amazing rapping skills. Abish Mathew stayed back on stage after the performance to host the rest of the show.

    High on Music

    Nucleya paved the way for the folks from the very popular comedy channel East India Company.  Though only three of the seven member group were present at the Fan Fest, they entertained their fans with their familiar comedic flavour while also giving a glimpse of their new property EIC Outrage. The trio was soon joined onstage by musician Kenny Sebastian who ended up teaching fans how to do an English and Hindi fusion song in a hilarious way. Sebastian took dibs at artists who took old Hindi songs and added English lyrics to them. Was he hinting at popular YouTube star from the UK, Arjun, who was also performing at the Fan Fest? Arjun is known for his cover renditions of Hindi songs, sung with English lyrics.

    The next big act to take the stage by storm was Indian Jam Project, which is famous for taking popular theme songs and giving them an Indian classical rendering. Their powerful music and vocals easily won everyone’s heart. IJM and a few more musical acts set the stage for the super stars of the night, All India Bakchod aka AIB, who brought in their flavour of comedy live on stage. The four thoroughly entertained the audience which only stopped screaming and laughing to hear the jokes. Their short act left everyone wanting for more.

    Fantastic Franta

    The screams soon multiplied as international YouTube star Connor Franta was introduced on stage. Emotions were high amongst the crowd as several diehard fans had tears in their eyes at the sight of Connor. As if that wasn’t enough, a few more millions of views and subscribers were added to the stage when Kanan Gill and Biswa joined him. The duo acted as temporary emcees for the session and was tasked with organising an interactive round with Connor and his fans from the crowd. A quick snappy Q and A got the crowd guessing, from Conor’s first written book to what holiday destination he wants to visit.

    Shout out to South

    This year’s YouTube Fan Fest also saw a series of acts from South India which reflected the growth of original content creators on YouTube there. It couldn’t be helped that Viva Boyz and The Madras Meter didn’t garner as much fandom at the event, because their regional fanbase wasn’t reflected in the crowd present in the auditorium. While they failed to have the same response as the veterans in the field like TVF and AIB, acts like the Chennai based PutChutney did a fairly good job for its YouTube Fan Fest appearance. The comedy group SNG also put up a good show with its impromptu acts and interactive session, but Being Indian’s duo Ayushman and Khattar clearly stole the show with their amazing fan presence.

    When it comes to live singing, Maati Baani also had the crowd cheering through powerful music and heady visuals in the background. After a few hits and misses, it was international YouTube star Arjun’s turn. He charmed the fans with his sweet smile and magnetic personality.  Raising the bar with her awesome vocals, Shirley Setia joined Arjun along with Kurt Hugo Schneider who gave music on keyboard. Schneider even sang a few Hindi lines, much to the audience’s delight.

    The Finishing blows

    This was followed by what was perhaps the most powerful live musical act of the night with Sanam. Staying true to their reputation, the boys rocked the stage with the high octane vocals and equally heart thumping instrumental beats. They turned YouTube Fan Fest to a rock concert. The only thing that could top it off was Lilly Singh Aka Superwoman who is considered the queen of YouTube space, especially when it comes to India. This US based star, has recently moved to LA after completing her world tour A Trip To Unicorn Island. Superwoman entered the stage like a true super star atop an auto-rickshaw that was driven on to the stage. Joining her was her favourite collaborating artist of many songs, Humble The Poet. She danced to the beats of her popular hits like IVIVI and Leh, while crazy fans couldn’t stop themselves from screaming out loud. There couldn’t have been a better way to close the curtains of the digital to offline magnum opus!

    YouTube Fan Fest 2016 was clearly an upgrade from last year’s edition. Not only did it increase the number of artists from 14 to 30, and added several more millions of views to the stage, it became a lot more inclusive of the regional talent that is currently budding in India, especially in the south. It successfully set digital viewers and fans to aspire to become creators themselves.

  • From online fandom to offline craze: YouTube Fan Fest 2016

    From online fandom to offline craze: YouTube Fan Fest 2016

    MUMBAI: Starstruck would be the right word to describe the thousands of fans who came to enjoy the YouTube Fan Fest 2016 which went live on 18 March 2016 at the NSCI in Mumbai. It was nothing short of a big ticket award show or a concert where your favourite rock star makes an appearance, with YouTube Stars setting the red carpet on fire, which was organised for first time in this year. And rightly so! With over millions of subscribers and several contracts to their name, YouTubers like TVF, AIB, Kanan Gill, Superwoman, and Connor Franta are nothing short of celebrities in this digital age.

    The Red Carpet

    The day was marked with high tension and excitement amongst the audience which took to the streets to show love for favourite YouTubers. Flashing cameras, selfie sticks and screaming fans were a common sight. Hundreds of teens, preteens and twenty somethings were seen flocking the space, trying to get a glimpse or maybe a photo or even get lucky and shake hands with their favourite star. The YouTubers also didn’t lose any chance to shower their fans with attention and clicked several selfies and signed many autographs for them.

    Opening with EDM

    By the time the fanfare outside settled down, the theatre inside was already packed with the audience, with everyone waiting for the stellar action to begin with EDM king Nucleya’s performance. And what a performance it was! As the familiar beats exploded through the auditorium, people were seen bobbing up and down on their seats, unable to contain their excitement. The sound was well produced, and the technical team made sure there was no jarring at the low base notes. Nucleya played a medley of his top tracks – Street Boy, Laung Gawacha, Akkad Bakkad, and many more, and the familiar dance beats got the audience off their seats. He was soon joined onstage by his rapper Naezy and Abish Mathew who also surprised everyone with his amazing rapping skills. Abish Mathew stayed back on stage after the performance to host the rest of the show.

    High on Music

    Nucleya paved the way for the folks from the very popular comedy channel East India Company.  Though only three of the seven member group were present at the Fan Fest, they entertained their fans with their familiar comedic flavour while also giving a glimpse of their new property EIC Outrage. The trio was soon joined onstage by musician Kenny Sebastian who ended up teaching fans how to do an English and Hindi fusion song in a hilarious way. Sebastian took dibs at artists who took old Hindi songs and added English lyrics to them. Was he hinting at popular YouTube star from the UK, Arjun, who was also performing at the Fan Fest? Arjun is known for his cover renditions of Hindi songs, sung with English lyrics.

    The next big act to take the stage by storm was Indian Jam Project, which is famous for taking popular theme songs and giving them an Indian classical rendering. Their powerful music and vocals easily won everyone’s heart. IJM and a few more musical acts set the stage for the super stars of the night, All India Bakchod aka AIB, who brought in their flavour of comedy live on stage. The four thoroughly entertained the audience which only stopped screaming and laughing to hear the jokes. Their short act left everyone wanting for more.

    Fantastic Franta

    The screams soon multiplied as international YouTube star Connor Franta was introduced on stage. Emotions were high amongst the crowd as several diehard fans had tears in their eyes at the sight of Connor. As if that wasn’t enough, a few more millions of views and subscribers were added to the stage when Kanan Gill and Biswa joined him. The duo acted as temporary emcees for the session and was tasked with organising an interactive round with Connor and his fans from the crowd. A quick snappy Q and A got the crowd guessing, from Conor’s first written book to what holiday destination he wants to visit.

    Shout out to South

    This year’s YouTube Fan Fest also saw a series of acts from South India which reflected the growth of original content creators on YouTube there. It couldn’t be helped that Viva Boyz and The Madras Meter didn’t garner as much fandom at the event, because their regional fanbase wasn’t reflected in the crowd present in the auditorium. While they failed to have the same response as the veterans in the field like TVF and AIB, acts like the Chennai based PutChutney did a fairly good job for its YouTube Fan Fest appearance. The comedy group SNG also put up a good show with its impromptu acts and interactive session, but Being Indian’s duo Ayushman and Khattar clearly stole the show with their amazing fan presence.

    When it comes to live singing, Maati Baani also had the crowd cheering through powerful music and heady visuals in the background. After a few hits and misses, it was international YouTube star Arjun’s turn. He charmed the fans with his sweet smile and magnetic personality.  Raising the bar with her awesome vocals, Shirley Setia joined Arjun along with Kurt Hugo Schneider who gave music on keyboard. Schneider even sang a few Hindi lines, much to the audience’s delight.

    The Finishing blows

    This was followed by what was perhaps the most powerful live musical act of the night with Sanam. Staying true to their reputation, the boys rocked the stage with the high octane vocals and equally heart thumping instrumental beats. They turned YouTube Fan Fest to a rock concert. The only thing that could top it off was Lilly Singh Aka Superwoman who is considered the queen of YouTube space, especially when it comes to India. This US based star, has recently moved to LA after completing her world tour A Trip To Unicorn Island. Superwoman entered the stage like a true super star atop an auto-rickshaw that was driven on to the stage. Joining her was her favourite collaborating artist of many songs, Humble The Poet. She danced to the beats of her popular hits like IVIVI and Leh, while crazy fans couldn’t stop themselves from screaming out loud. There couldn’t have been a better way to close the curtains of the digital to offline magnum opus!

    YouTube Fan Fest 2016 was clearly an upgrade from last year’s edition. Not only did it increase the number of artists from 14 to 30, and added several more millions of views to the stage, it became a lot more inclusive of the regional talent that is currently budding in India, especially in the south. It successfully set digital viewers and fans to aspire to become creators themselves.

  • YouTube fanfest returns to India for 3rd edition

    YouTube fanfest returns to India for 3rd edition

    MUMBAI: Youtube Fanfest is back in India for a third time and how! On its third edition now, the mega celebration boasts of a 30 artists line up of digital artists and content creators, who will take centre stage on 18 March 2016 in Mumbai. The show will be co-produced by Only Much Louder and Branded, and has Pepsi, Pantene, Amazon.in and Clean and Clear as sponsors, with Pepsi coming onbaord for the second time. Star acts include SuperWoman aka Lilly Singh, Kanan Gill, Connor Franta, SANAM, TVF and AIB

    Sharing his excitement over the fest, YouTube India head of entertainment and content Satya Raghavan said, “India has undergone a content creator revolution. Over the last few years, Indian YouTube creators have gained millions of new subscribers and have taken over the imagination of the youth in India. In our view, 2015 was a breakout year for the young industry and the ecosystem has really evolved in India, with mobile driving massive growth for online video consumption. Now, we’re seeing online creators break open the gates for a whole new kind of entertainment for Indians online, with advertisers looking to tap into this space in a meaningful way.”

    While the idea is to reach out to maximum number of people and inspire them to not only celebrate the existing content creators, but join the community as well. YouTube is banking on organic promotion of the show through artists and their subscribers. “It is largely organic. Several thousands of content creators put out videos on their channels, and they have their millions of subscribers, who themselves have their own social media platforms to put the word across. We don’t think we need any more marketing,” said Raghavan.

    About the booming digital content industry and the mushrooming of OTT players across the board Ragahavan said, “I think it’s great that more people are doing things around video. It will only expand the pie. Especially with bandwidth opening up in the country hopefully thanks to the several 4G services. It is an exciting time for content creators and video content consumers to be in India.”

    Making the most of the platform, Culture Machine, OML, Qyuki, and The Viral Fever (TVF) also announced four new original properties on YouTube. Firstly #LaughterGames, where nine comedy creators will launch their own comedy web series, featuring YouTube comedians such as East India Comedy, Put Chutney and Kenny Sebastian. Qyuki will launch Jamminin’, a show featuring Bollywood composers and YouTube music creators. In the coming months, Culture Machine will be launching Beauty Hunt, a beauty/style-centric program, while OML will launch season 2 of its successful Comedy Hunt, the search for India’s next comedy act, while veteran web show creators TVF will be launching a search for the next generation of web series creators. A Tamil Comedy Hunt with Vision Time, a Telugu Comedy Hunt with ETV, and Katha, a Tamil/Telugu web series property are some of the launches that can be expected from south India later in the year.

    To reflect on YouTube’s growth in India Raghavan shared some data: “While overall watchtime in India has grown by 80 per cent YoY (with 55 per cent of that watchtime on mobile) and the hours of video uploaded from India has increased at 90 per cent YoY, content uploaded by India’s independent creators has risen especially quickly. For instance, watchtime of independent musicians grew over 92 per cent YoY; comedy and entertainment grew 100 per cent YoY; beauty and fashion videos have grown over 138 per cent YoY. Another notable area of watchtime growth came from the south, with Tamil and Telugu content seeing a 75 per cent spike in YoY growth.