Many new short video platforms have sprung up since the ban on Chinese apps, and are vying for the loyalty of former TikTok stars. But how many will survive?
Moni Kundu, who posted comic videos with her son on TikTok, had 6.2 million followers on the platform
Image: Robin Singh
Jaydeep Gohil, better known as Hydroman on TikTok, shot to fame when he posted a video of himself dancing underwater. After practising in a swimming pool in his hometown of Rajkot for almost a year in 2012, Gohil convinced his father, a businessman, to build an over-the-ground concrete tank at home. “In the pool I could only practice for one hour, after that the next batch of swimmers would come in,” says the 25-year-old.
His father agreed and when he saw what his son was up to, thanks to an underwater camera, he was taken aback. Within a year, he bought him a 10,000 litre glass tank to let people see his moves live. In 2015, Gohil entered the India’s Got Talent competition and made it to the semi-finals. Since then he’s been touring cities across India with live performances.
According to one industry insider who spoke to Forbes India on condition of anonymity, ByteDance “literally threw money at people” to grow the platform. “They were desperate for the Indian market. They spent as much as $20 million to $30 million a month,” he says.
Without that kind of capital, most apps that have sprung up in the recent past will fizzle out, he adds. Or they might pivot to some other business, like video gaming and eventually sell out, given that many already claim to have garnered millions of downloads.
“Only one or two players can take the pole position in this market,” says Mehta. “Once those winners become clear, capital will flow to them, but until then I have my doubts as to how much money Indian venture capitalists will put into this space.”
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This isn’t the first time TikTok has run into controversy in India. It drew scrutiny last year for encouraging pornography, inciting religious hate and promoting data theft. The app was briefly banned in April 2019 by a court order, which was then reversed. In July 2019, three of TikTok’s biggest stars were arrested after they posted a video on the death of a Muslim man. Later that month, the company announced it would set up a $100 million data centre in India to allay the government’s security concerns.
Moni Kundu, an accounts officer-turned-homemaker, supports the government’s decision to ban TikTok and other Chinese apps. She started using the platform as a means of entertainment after leaving her job at an MNC, following the birth of her child. Her now six-year-old son often features in her comic videos that have attracted the attention of brands like Parachute, Emami and Nivea Cream.
“Initially we would do it for our own amusement and family fun. It was effortless,” she says. But when—within a month of joining TikTok in August 2018—her videos went viral, she started looking into it more seriously. She taught herself how to edit videos, add sound bytes and mix music. She also researched how people were monetising the platform.
Just before the ban was announced, Kundu had 6.2 million followers on TikTok and 100,000 on Roposo, which she joined around the same time as TikTok. However, since the ban, her Roposo followers have jumped to 400,000. “Rebuilding my fan base will, of course, take time,” she concedes. “But I believe in focusing on the positive. Platforms will keep changing, but our talent remains. We’ll move on.”
(This story appears in the 31 July, 2020 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)