Prime Minister Modi excels at entering the unfamiliar. The creator economy and the grasp it has over popular culture might not be where he belongs – but he’s always part of the zeitgeist.
He personally presented a bunch of content creators, influencers and YouTubers, with awards—India’s first ever ‘National Creators Award’. There’s an air of respect that comes with the name itself. Receiving a National award for posting content, a profession you presumably chanced upon, and then being felicitated by the prime minister himself. What a massive win.
A release from the PM’s office describes it as an acknowledgement of the contribution made by creators in nation-building. It’s envisioned as a “launchpad for using creativity to drive positive change”.
This is the BJP tapping into the influencer network and their millions of followers. The prime minister, who also functions as our influencer-in-chief, is accurately aware of the importance of ‘creators’.
Even if their content is average at best, and their levels of intellect circumspect (take Ranveer Allahbadia for instance, better known as BeerBiceps), the level of influence they exert over public discourse is immense. On his podcast, Allahabadia, winner of Disruptor of the Year, has interviewed everyone of note. From politicians to actors to his social media rivals, people across the spectrum have responded to his half-baked questions, explaining things slowly as they would to a toddler. However, there’s no disputing the amount of cultural capital he now carries.
BeerBiceps is the window to the world for lakhs of people. It’s through him that they shape their political and cultural opinions. He’s also regarded as a news source. He has a strange hold over people and is shrewd enough to understand today’s political landscape and how it’s necessary to be on the ‘right’ side of things. That’s how he gets ministers, including foreign minister S Jaishankar on his show, and that’s presumably why he’s on the prime minister’s radar.
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Perfect vehicle
Receiving a National Creator Award from Modi is validation of both the subtle and not-so-subtle ways in which content creators operate — how they’re able to retain a ‘neutral’ persona even while they’re unmistakably pushing the government’s agenda. That agenda can be as simple as making politicians seem likeable.
Jaya Kishori who was awarded Best Creator for Social Change has 10.1 million followers on Instagram; legions of ardent followers who see her as a warrior for social justice, and an upholder of women’s rights. Where was she on 22 January of this year? In Ayodhya, dressed in saffron, delivering a sermon to a maniacal crowd, dressed similarly. She appears to have legitimate fans – men record her feverishly, women sing along. The Ram Mandir was the coming of age of a decades-long political project, and influencers were the cleverest way to let everyone know that this was the cultural event of the season.
Content creators, now a coveted, socially influential group who literally didn’t exist a decade ago are the perfect way to remind everyone of the government’s newness.
But a question arises: now that they’ve received these awards, can they post content that doesn’t align with the present government? Will they?
Views are personal.
(Edited by Theres Sudeep)