Vlogging on the rise in Pakistan; What does it say about us?
YouTube, once a platform to learn and earn, is now becoming a cinema and a way to entertain people. There are few content creators left today in Pakistan who are generating content that helps people.
There was a time when people like Irfan Junejo, Shahveer Jafary, Ducky Bhai (when he was a gamer and roster), Moroo, Syed Muzamil, and many other creators created content to help and entertain people positively. But today, If we look at YouTube's situation in Pakistan, especially in the recent few years, it is almost dying.
Daily vlogging has taken over the YouTube scene in Pakistan, with an increasing number of channels gaining millions of views.
In 2024, eight out of the top ten most popular YouTubers in the country were daily vloggers. This trend indicates a significant shift in content consumption as audiences enjoy the real-time experiences and behind-the-scenes glimpses offered by these creators.
While daily vlogs are popular across the globe, including in India, with vloggers like Saurav Joshi, Pakistan's audience has also embraced this genre. However, the question arises: Why do people follow these vloggers? It's not just about entertainment; it's about connection. Many viewers enjoy seeing a glimpse into the lives of these influencers, no matter how dramatic or controversial their actions might seem.
It's becoming increasingly common for vloggers to push boundaries in their quest for views.
One incident that sparked public outrage involved a vlogger who filmed his brother's funeral while everyone else was grieving. Such behaviour reflects a deeper issue within the vlogging culture — the pursuit of fame and recognition often trumps moral considerations.
In another video, a new vlogger is showing his newly married wife, saying, "Today I will reveal my wife's face", and then he moved the camera from her head to her foot, saying, "Check out the look of your Bhabhi."
Vlogging is not a bad thing in itself, but the point is how people get inspired by other vloggers who show their cars, expensive houses, lavish lives, and so on.
In a recent example, if you look at famous YouTuber Rajab Butt's wedding, he spends millions of rupees on his marriage. Big YouTubers like Ducky Bhai, Sistrology, and many others came to his marriage.
He inspired many with how rich he is and how much he spent on his marriage; no one knows about his struggle. One of the important things is that he uploaded vlogs of every ceremony of his marriage, which got approximately sox to seven million views for each video. Technically, he recovered the money he spent on his marriage from YouTube.
This obsession with social media fame has led some vloggers to reveal too much about their personal lives, including showcasing family members and personal moments. This has raised concerns about privacy and respect, with viewers questioning whether the line between entertainment and exploitation has been crossed.
The audience thinks this is the only formula to get views, which it is not. These big YouTubers have different backgrounds in different industries. Ducky was a gamer; people have known him since 2015-16, and that is why they were attracted to him; this is what our audience needs to understand.
The rise of this trend has sparked debates on the limits of daily vlogging. As more influencers join the race to gain followers, the content becomes increasingly sensational, sometimes to the point of being distasteful. There are fears that if this continues, viewers will grow tired of the repetitive nature of the content, and daily vlogging could lose its appeal.
Vlogging has become popular in Pakistan because it is easy to make. Many vloggers share their personal lives, families, and financial status, which attracts viewers interested in others' lives.
However, this popularity often leads to repetitive and addictive content rather than innovation. While people consume such content, it lacks depth or appreciation for creativity.
Creating impactful content requires effort and investment. In India, platforms like Dice Media and FilterCopy started with small skits and grew into major players, even lending some creators to Bollywood.
In Pakistan, ventures like Nashpati Prime started strong but failed due to a lack of investment and long-term vision. New projects often stop growing because they aren't treated as proper businesses.
While vlogging remains a convenient way to gain followers, it doesn't grow the industry. To move forward, Pakistan needs investment and support for creative content. By fostering originality, the digital content industry can become a sustainable and thriving sector.
YouTube in India:
On the other hand, if we look at YouTube in India, few people are vlogging, but their content is top-notch. Recently, MrBeast (the World's biggest YouTuber) visited India and made a video with Carryminati (an Indian YouTuber with more than 40 million subscribers). Almost every Indian creator participated in the video, and it was actually worth watching for entertainment purposes.
Apart from this, they have many standup comedians, like Munawar Faruqui, Samay Raina, Ravi Gupta, Zakir Khan, Muhammad Haseeb, Ashish Solanki and many others. Samay made a show named "India Got Latent", which is a masterpiece for dark humour audiences, and it has gone viral.
Indian creators perform internationally. They have a very big gaming industry, and it's not about whether they are big as a country or they have a big economy. The point is that they have made their audience. They picked a small YouTuber from trash and made him a star in months. They collaborate, helping new creators to grow.
Final thoughts:
You can do vlogging, but it should have some potential that a viewer does not feel that he wastes his time. There should be something in your vlog to learn; it should not be just about what you eat, what you wear and where you go. You can teach your viewers how to join YouTube and what difficulties you can face while starting YouTube. Each type of content has a saturation time, and with time, you'll be forgotten by the people because trends change as the interest of the audience changes.
As the landscape of YouTube in Pakistan evolves, it's crucial to keep an eye on how these trends develop. Will the craze for daily vlogs continue, or will the excessive and controversial behaviour push the audience away? Only time will tell, but for now, daily vloggers remain at the forefront of Pakistan's YouTube scene, shaping the content and culture for years to come.