YouTube Shorts opening door for mobile-first creators in India: Vidyasagar

YouTube said that its short-form video sharing platform YouTube Shorts, which was launching in India two years ago is furthering its mission to give everyone a voice and help creators grow their audiences and be inspired by new video formats. 

“Two years ago, we introduced YouTube Shorts, first in India, to make it easier to watch and create short-form content on YouTube,” said Ajay Vidyasagar, Regional Director, APAC, YouTube Partnerships. “We are proud of how quickly YouTube Shorts have become popular in India. It was where our journey began, and it’s encouraging to see the adoption and excitement the product brings to both creators and viewers.”

Since its inception, YouTube Shorts has grown a community of more than 1.5 billion monthly logged-in users globally, generating 30 billion views per day, four times more than 1 year ago. 

“We truly believe that what moves India has the potential to shape the world. Digital video has become a gateway to the world for millions of Indians,” said Ajay Vidyasagar, Regional Director, APAC, YouTube Partnerships. “In particular, short form video represents opportunity like no other - to be entertained and inspired, to learn and earn, to connect and grow.”

The firm said Shorts is opening the door for mobile-first creators from all corners of India. In India, the company said Shorts is lowering the barriers for under-represented voices that may otherwise have not had a platform. Young creators, from small towns and even India’s hinterlands, across regions and languages are now able to unlock opportunities to express their creativity through Shorts.

Celebrating their history and traditions, unique cultures and even distinctive local quirks, like the BusTubers of Kerala, these creators are able to connect with a wide diaspora through relatable content, shared interest and even nostalgia.

“Shorts has helped capture the interest and imagination of mobile-first creators and viewers who from whom a smartphone is a window to a world of opportunity,” said Vidyasagar. 

He said in India, Shorts is lowering the barriers for under-represented voices to come to the fore and pursue their passions; many of whom may otherwise have not had a platform to do so. 

“We’re seeing creators across languages, socio-economic backgrounds and even India’s hinterlands turn to Shorts to share their passions, grow their channels and build successful careers,” said Vidyasagar.

The company said what is unique is that Shorts is not only watching new trends but participating and reshaping their direction through a unique blend of culture and creativity. This has manifested in delightful ways from regional instruments and sounds synced to popular beats and lyrics to popular global hits reimagined in native languages.

The company said from callisthenics to Rubik’s Cube art, cricket, the comicverse and many more, communities on YouTube are bursting through from niches to the mainstream.

For instance, the NRI community shows up on YouTube Shorts in heartwarming ways by inspiring those who are hopeful of living abroad or helping people navigate life in a new place. Shayaris are having a moment on YouTube, with creators Sameed Saab, Tamkeen Khan, and Arunendra7 helping reignite interest in the forgotten genre. Shorts creators have also turned the daily dilemma of ‘What’s for Lunch’ into a creative expression, sharing recipes as they cook and pack lunch for their families. 

YouTube said it has seen the birth of a new trend including in India, that is unique to the platform: “the rise of the multiformat creator and artist.” Moving seamlessly between and leveraging the full breadth of different video formats on YouTube -- from Shorts, Long-form, Live -- these multiformat creators and artists are unlocking content combinations to maximize their creativity, reach, community connection and revenue. The interplay between video formats mirrors the reality of today’s viewer, who expect content to suit their active lives, varied interests and wide-ranging attention spans.

This approach has been yielding real results for both creators and artists. In April 2022, Shorts containing content sampled from long-form videos generated over 100 billion views. With the launch of Shorts, YouTube said artist and creator channels uploading both Shorts and long-form are seeing better overall watch time and subscriber growth relative to those only uploading long-form.