TULSI, India: Riding around the dusty streets of India’s Tulsi village, a man dressed in a black cap and pink T-shirt sits on a bullock cart with a mound of grass behind him.The hip-hop video is just one of many locally produced, Bollywood-inspired works being produced for the village’s primary YouTube channel, which has more than 200 uploaded films and around 120,000 subscribers.
Gyanendra Shukla and Jai Verma founded the “Being Chhattisgarhiya” channel in 2018 as mobile Internet connection in India became more affordable, motivated by videos they watched on the streaming service.
To dedicate themselves to the channel, they both quit their day jobs.According to its website, YouTube rewards content creators if their channel accrues at least 1,000 members and 4,000 hours of watched material within a 12-month period.
But just a few well-known performers receive payment for their services, with the majority of the earnings going toward equipment upgrades. The remainder perform volunteer work in their spare time because they enjoy performing or enjoy seeing themselves on television.
“My dream job would be acting. I want to keep trying, and if I have the chance, I’ll undoubtedly move to Bollywood “said 24 year old Pinky Sahoo, a well-known face in the videos.The actors range in age from young children to grandparents in their 80s.
