RISE OF THE FINFLUENCERS

HOW A BUNCH OF YOUTUBE STARS IS MAKING IT BIG BY INTRODUCING MILLIONS TO STOCK INVESTING AND FINANCIAL PLANNING

- ASHISH RUKHAIYAR

NAME: MUKUL MALIK

AGE: 39

QUALIFICATION: MBA

NUMBER OF FOLLOWERS: 2.45 MILLION

AVERAGE NUMBER OF VIDEOS PER MONTH: 5-6

BASE: DELHI

Mumbai was a huge contradiction in 2020. On the one hand, India’s financial capital was breaking under the strain of the Covid-19 pandemic and on the other, its financial markets were on a tear. The stock market went on a record-breaking rally, foreign investors pumped in billions, and millions of new investors came in and traded at record levels. But the financially savvy investors were not the only ones cashing in.

Around 150 kilometres south of Mumbai lies Pune, home to Rachana Ranade, a chartered accountant by qualification and a teacher by trade. Here, the 35-year-old puts up 8 to 10 videos on YouTube every month. Ranade, however, doesn’t teach her 2.78 million subscribers how to draw up financials, but tells them how to analyse them and invest in the market.

A thousand kilometres from Pune is Raipur, which isn’t even among the top 20 cities in terms of contribution to the country’s stock market turnover. Yet, 28-year-old Pranjal Kamra has created a buzz with his YouTube channel. He has nearly three million subscribers — 2.83 million to be exact — who tune in for his advice on stock markets and personal investments.

Ranade and Kamra are among the many big names from smaller cities in the growing world of ‘finfluencers.’