Lights, Camera, Action!
I don't know about you but these are the 3 words
that I've wanted to hear at some point in my life,
especially when Madhuri Dixit was at the peak of her career.
Kyu ki #MaiBhiMadhuriDixitBannaChahtiThi
But why roam around the streets of Mumbai, looking for a production house to cast you
when you can write your own videos,
edit your own videos and
you will find people who will watch those videos.
And if this face can get 1 Lakh Subscribers, so can you.
So today I am going to tell you
1. My journey, what all I had to do to get 1 Lakh subscribers.
2. Important lessons that you must know before you start your own channel and
3. I'll also tell you about the equipment that I use
and the initial investment that I made to start this channel.
So this video is not to tell you how Grreeaat of a YouTuber I am but
to tell you what really happens behind the scenes.
Because now that we are family, I don't really want to hide anything from you.
But before that, if you like what I am doing, make sure
you hit that big fat Like Button
because that motivates me to make more videos.
Let's begin.
On 6th August 2016, we released our first video.
It took us 18 months to reach 10K subscribers.
And just 6 months to go from 10K to 1 Lakh subscribers.
And just 1 month to go from 1 Lakh to 1.58 Lakh subscribers.
Crazy, isn't it?
So let's take a quick trip down the memory lane
to see exactly what happened?
And for that I've divided my YouTube journey into 6 phases.
When I used to work in I.T, a few girls in the gym
used to ask me how to workout instead of asking the trainer.
So I thought why not make a YouTube channel out of it.
And thus began The Urban Fight.
So for 2 months, everyday we used to create new 15 Min Home Workout Videos
and in between as breaks, Sugandh would read out the daily news.
So workout + daily news update. Great idea, right?
Nobody was watching it.
I noticed that dance videos used to get a lot of eye balls.
Plus it's a great workout.
So I did the 90's Bollywood Dance Workout, Beyonce Dance Workout
I even became a Zumba Certified Trainer so
that I can legally use the word, 'Zumba', in my video title.
'Dhaakad' was my first choreography and because of this video
we got our first 500 subscribers.
And this was the time when even my parents and relatives found out that
I am 'dancing on the Internet' and all hell broke lose.
But as my friend Rohit says,
#MahLyfeMahRules
Dance videos were doing great, but I felt that we are not really adding value to our subscribers.
This is the time when you are not famous
but make 'okayish' videos. So people want you to make videos for them.....for free.
I thought atleast they'll promote it in their networks
and I was desperate for that outreach.
So I did a running video for an adventure club,
a video about exams for a student magazine
and a Zumba video on a Telugu song
because a famous Telugu FB page said that they will promote it
which they never did.
Now I don't regret doing any of these videos
but for a long time my focus shifted to how can I make videos for others so that they'd promote it
instead of discovering what videos I like to create.
This was the time when I wanted to discover who I am and what I enjoy doing.
So I tried different genres.
I even did a Hyderabadi comedy video called, 'Hauley Weight Loss Sawalaan'
where I invented a sassy character called Afreen Aapi.
This was the video that made me realise why I should never do comedy.
During this phase, we were still stuck at 2000 subscribers.
I remember around the same time, the MSG controversy was happening
and one of my relatives called me and said,
"People have turned up in lakhs for this guy..
...and you still don't have 2000 subscribers."
More than making me angry, this comment
determined me to pursue this even more.
Now all this while I was creating videos
but I was not connecting to my audience.
I was giving information but there was no emotion.
This was the time when we decided...let's make videos that have affected me!
And that's when the channel became Female-Centric.
It's not because I don't love guys. I do.
My husband is a guy.
So I started talking about Periods, Eve-Teasing.
On someone else's channel I saw a video called,
'Questions you want to ask a Gync'
where the YouTuber interviewed her mother who was a Gync.
I loved the idea.
But it didn't answer all the questions that I had.
So that was the first time I went to see a Gync
and visited her 2-3 times before I could
request her to do a video with me.
On the same lines, I did, 'Questions every woman wants to ask the Police'
and this is one video that I am extremely proud of.
Because we all talk about gender equality and female problems
but nobody really offers any solutions.
In this video we discuss solutions for problems like
Eve-Teasing, Domestic Violence, Sexual Harassment, Child Abuse and more..
If there is one video that you want to watch on my channel
I request you to watch this video because
you might just save someone's life.
We started as a Health and Fitness channel
but we realised what use are diet plans of
when you are not healthy here (in the mind).
And 'here', career and money are the biggest worries.
And that's when we started making Finance videos,
Mutual Fund videos, Career Videos.
These videos are extremely close to my heart
because that's when you and I became friends.
I love reading your comments where you share
your life goals with me. And that's the community I want to build.
Of go-getters. People like 'you' who work hard to get what they want.
I really love you guys.
So those were the 6 phases of The Urban Fight.
But the phase that I always want to be in, is the experiment phase.
That's why we keep doing 'Travel' videos,
I did that IKEA video, where I had to edit 500 files and
I screwed my back, but that's okay
who needs those last 2 vertebrae right?
Anyway, so that's the journey that you see on-screen.
But that's just the tip of the Iceberg. :)
Now I am going to tell you what I had to do behind the scenes
to get 1 Lakh subscribers.
These 3 stories made me the YouTuber that I am today.
Story #1: I am a Software Engineer by profession.
4 years of Engineering and 8-9 years of Corporate experience.
But if you go to the gym, doesn't mean you are qualified to give health information.
So for 6 months I attended theoretical fitness classes taken
by Doctors and Fitness Coaches.
I became an ACE Certified Fitness Expert,
a PN Certified Nutrition Coach,
a Zumba Certified Trainer
but most importantly, I worked as a gym trainer,
a HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Trainer), at a functional gym called, 'F45'
so that I get the experience of training people.
Because my priority is to give you the right information
and not make any random 'Keto Diet' videos.
Story #2: When we were struggling at 500 subscribers
for publicity, me and Sugandh used to wake up at 5:30 AM every Saturday,
go to parks across Hyderabad
and conduct free 15 Min workout sessions.
This is Kashif, he used to join sometimes to help us conduct the sessions.
Both him and Sugandh used to go around and request people to join
while I conducted 15-15 minute sessions for 2.5 hours.
Some people were so excited, they would join even without having to invite them
and some, didn't even look at us
while we requested them to join.
It didn't get us a lot of subscribers
but it taught us a lot about human behaviour.
And the third and the final thing that truly made us who we are
are collaborations.
We requested our friends to be in our videos
hoping that their friends will watch it.
We did a video with an RJ from Hyderabad
and she was kind enough to share our video on her page.
We did it because no other YouTuber wanted to do a collab with us.
And why would they? We were in our 1000's.
But somebody from the YouTube team, told us a story
of a girl who went to meet, 'iiSuperwomanii'
during a meet and greet and gave her a script.
iiSuperwomanii found it so cute
that even though the girl had 8000 subscribers, she still did that collab with her.
I thought, what a brilliant idea!
So we went to attend a Creator Camp, all the way to Delhi.
I thought I'll take a script for that one YouTuber that I loved.
I am not going to tell her name but
I found her in the hallway, ran inside the room to get the script from my bag
and I went to her.
I was so excited to see her, I introduced myself,
told her how much I love her work and I gave her the script.
She didn't even look at it.
Had a troubled irritated expression on her face,
asked me to mail it and walked away.
It broke my heart.
It's okay if you don't want to do a video
but you atleast treat a fan right.
I came back to Hyderabad and I did that video anyway.
And that was the first video to hit 1 Million Views on my channel.
I probably want to do a pelvic thrust right now, but I shouldn't.
Screw it.
So that was my journey.
Sure I faced a lot of rejection along the way
but I wouldn't have had it any other way.
Because rejection didn't just make me a better YouTuber,
it made me a better person.
Speaking of rejection, we are not done yet.
Every year, YouTube conducts these events called NextUp
where select YouTubers with potential are chosen to be trained for 5 days
by Top Creators like Bhuvan Bam, Mostly Sane and the YouTube team
so that they create better content.
You can apply only if you have between 10K to 1 Lakh subscribers.
I have been wanting to get selected for the past 2 years
because it just puts that YouTube stamp that
you are working hard and doing good work.
So last year we couldn't apply because we were less than 10K subscribers
and this year, I was planning my videos so that we don't hit 1 Lakh subscribers
until the applications open up.
And they finally opened up and I applied
and this is the mail I got last week.
"Unfortunately we cannot offer you a winning spot"
To say that I am disappointed, would be an understatement.
It's not about the training or the money.
It's about not recognising the hard-work and the difference that you are trying to make
and that's YouTube.
So if you want to start a YouTube channel and want to take anything from my story, it's this..
1. Don't do it for the money
or the likes or the subscribers.
Do it because you love it.
Youtube is a long ride in the night on a road with no street lights.
It's scary and frustrating.
But the only reason that's pushing me is because I love
making videos that I believe are making a difference.
And the second and the most important point of being a YouTuber is this..
Stay loyal to your subscribers.
Don't sell things that you don't believe in.
Everyday I get requests for selling packaged snacks,
fat-loss drinks, supplement powders - things that I will never use for myself or my family
and you are a part of my family.
When you build an audience, remember that
the trust they have in you, is worth a lot more than any money that brands can give you.
Don't lose that trust.
So always remember these 2 things while you are on your way of getting 1 Lakh subscribers.
And finally, here's the equipment that I use.
A DSLR for regular shoots,
a Vlogging camera and a Gimbal for whenever I am travelling,
a Joby Gorilla Pod and a Tripod because most of the times I shoot alone,
a collar mike for better sound,
a Yeti microphone incase more than one person is speaking,
lights
and a Mackbook Pro for editing my videos.
If you want to buy any of these,
I have left their Amazon links in the description.
You might ask, what's next?
Frankly, I don't know.
I am thinking of either starting a new career channel or
a new love and relationship channel.
I don't know. Comment and tell me what do you think I should do.
Because on this scary YouTube road, you are my street light.
But before you leave, both me and Sugandh
would 'Dil Se', like to thank you
because this silver play button would have not been possible without you.
Thanks for believing in us, when nobody else did.
And in case you haven't make sure you subscribe
and hit that bell icon.
We promise to see you again next week, until then..
Keep fighting, The Urban Fight to be Fit!