‘Not’ a good life

Swati Rai

Go through their social media feed and it is glimpses of a snazzy and luxurious life that greet you. With check-ins at the most happening places, sumptuous food and glamorous travel photos, social media influencers affect consumer behaviour in favour of the trends they endorse. They are also known to double businesses, set new rules... It makes for an envious job, but is it all that rosy? Here is a peep into the life of social media influencers.

Mumbai-based vlogger Larissa D’sa laments most people don’t understand that while a regular officegoer works eight hours, people like her are on the job, 24x7. This involves strategising, writing, videographing, researching and, most importantly, engaging with the viewers. “People get taken in by an amazing lifestyle, luxurious hotels, but fail to see the hard work behind it all. It is a serious business and not merely a trend for us.”

The stress of churning out regular, meaningful content and also bear with online trolls, does take a toll on the social media stars. Recently, a popular Bangalore-based blogger committed suicide. This has got the influencers coming out and talking about suffering from depression, tackling the situation and advising people to be sensitive when it comes to consuming the content they churn.

Mumbai-based vlogger Sherry Shroff’s video on how an influencer’s life is not a bed of roses was prompted by the suicide of chef and travel writer Anthony Bourdain. “I needed to make that video as I thought that if we are vulnerable, what about an average person who thinks of our lives as charmed? I had to say that everyone goes through good and bad times, but we choose to show a certain part of our lives. It is not reality TV,” she cautions.

D’sa says she has been into depression too, but came out of it. “I travel, attend social meets, catch up with fellow YouTubers to de-stress and realise that everyone’s in the same boat!” As a responsible influencer, she feels it is important to take her viewers through the process of achieving a task.

Delhi-based tech and automobile YouTuber Ayushi Mathur shares a personal practice that helps her stay real. “We can’t keep on investing in buying new tech and cars, which I review on my channel. So, I tell my audience very honestly that I borrow the phones and cars from friends. I get the maximum response on my goofy and honest posts on Instagram, which makes me and my followers happy!”

What’s attracting more and more people to don the influencer’s hat is the fact that starting off requires very little investment. Apart from a handy smartphone, unethical practices such as buying followers, comments, likes or even views have made making a name and lots of money easy. To counter this menace, Shroff suggests more research and consciousness by the brands. “Influencers need to be more transparent in declaring paid partnerships and be accountable for their content so as to not give out a wrong impression to the people.”

Sejal Kumar, a Gurugram-based vlogger, underlines the hardwork that goes into ideating for content to production, business and finance. She admits to feeling the pressure of portraying the best version of herself. “However, when I feel that it is going slightly out of hand, I backtrack a little. Being authentic is important to ensure I do not get sucked into the rut of social media,” she states. No surprises then that Dr Samir Parikh advises parents to go for a digital detox and first be a role model for their children so as not to get hooked to the social media world. Director of Department of Mental Health and Behaviourial Sciences, Fortis National Mental Health Program, Dr Parikh opines that social media addiction is not limited to teenagers, but also to adults who suffer from health issues due to over exposure. “We counsel people to be physically active, step out of the house, work out and develop a hobby. We push them towards creativity to counter the increasing social media and internet addiction,” he says.

Getting started is easy

Tamil Nadu-based couple comprising influencers Saanya and Abhimanyu believes that brand collaborations are a bonus, but only after one has been able to find one’s niche. According to Saanya, financial investment is an integral part of microblogging. “A decent camera will cost you upwards of half a lakh and even if you’re using a good camera phone, it will set you back by a substantial amount. There is a need to constantly upgrade too.” Contrary to the misconception, a sure shot recipe to quick success doesn’t exist, she adds. Hard work is the only way to get noticed and go viral!