VIRAL IN THE VALLEY
THE WEEK India|September 18, 2022
YouTubers in Kashmir are gaining popularity while creating comedy around socially relevant themes
TARIQ BHAT
VIRAL IN THE VALLEY

MAKING COMEDY in conflict-ridden Kashmir is no laughing matter.

But a bunch of YouTubers from the Valley—all in their 20s—are doing just that, earning both fame and a living. With little access to movie theatres and other sources of entertainment, people in Kashmir are turning to YouTube channels to find some relief, comic and otherwise. What make these channels popular are their comic content, simple language and good acting, taking one back to the 1980s and 1990s when Kashmiri serials on Doordarshan and actors like the late Shadi Lal Koul and Nazir Josh were quite popular.

But these videos are not just for laughs; they have a message at their core. For instance, in Berozgar Ti Azuk Jawan (Unemployment and Today’s Youth) by Kashmiri Rounders, a man meets the father of a girl whom his son, an unemployed doctor, wants to marry. The girl’s father refuses to let his daughter marry an unemployed man, but agrees to marry her off to the man’s elder son, who is disabled but a well-paid engineer. The channel, with more than 9.5 lakh subscribers, is among the most popular Kashmiri YouTube channels.

Likewise, 'Before and after elections' by Kashmiri Kalkharabs, which has more than 8.5 lakh subscribers, tells the story of an MLA making tall promises before elections. After getting elected, he mistreats his supporters, including a village elder who requests him for an irrigation pump for farmers. He tells him they should plant maize instead of rice, which needs less water. The video aims to highlight the hypocrisy of politicians and how they deceive people for power.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة September 18, 2022 من THE WEEK India.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة September 18, 2022 من THE WEEK India.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من THE WEEK INDIA مشاهدة الكل
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
THE WEEK India

What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?

IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.

time-read
5 mins  |
December 08, 2024
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
THE WEEK India

Trump and the crisis of liberalism

Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.

time-read
2 mins  |
December 08, 2024
Men eye the woman's purse
THE WEEK India

Men eye the woman's purse

A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.

time-read
2 mins  |
December 08, 2024
When trees hold hands
THE WEEK India

When trees hold hands

A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges

time-read
3 mins  |
December 08, 2024
Ms Gee & Gen Z
THE WEEK India

Ms Gee & Gen Z

The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing

time-read
5 mins  |
December 08, 2024
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
THE WEEK India

Vikram Seth-a suitable man

Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.

time-read
2 mins  |
December 08, 2024
Superman bites the dust
THE WEEK India

Superman bites the dust

When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.

time-read
3 mins  |
December 08, 2024
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
THE WEEK India

OLD MAN AND THE SEA

Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port

time-read
4 mins  |
December 08, 2024
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE WEEK India

Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets

THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.

time-read
3 mins  |
December 08, 2024
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
THE WEEK India

Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay

AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.

time-read
2 mins  |
December 08, 2024