Ankit Baiyanpuria from Baiyanpur village, in Sonepat, Haryana has become a common and well-known name in Indian social media circles. More so, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with him at the beginning of this month. Soon after, Ankit’s popularity broke all possible bounds. The video of his interaction with the prime minister garnered tens of million views and about 7.5 million likes on Instagram. Since then, Ankit has done music videos, is attending key events as a special invitee or chief guest and is now earning and buying into a good life.
But, what is the reason behind it? Is it a great case study in itself?
Let’s check.
Ankit is a young man in his early 20s who had a small-time job. His family lives in the Rumal Panna of his village. He has two cousins who live close by. They are also his closest aides now along with two cousins from another family. Ankit’s family has little means and has lived most of their lives through challenges that many on Instagram won’t be able to relate to. But Ankit has one passion, wrestling and sports. The village is known for the same. There is a Paralympian from the same village and another successful wrestler and Commonwealth medallist. Consequently, it’s a tough rise. What this does, however, is that it brings him closer to what he made his passion; i.e. exercise and body-building.
Ankit’s older cousin, Pawan, is the serious of the lot and thinks little of spending long hours in the gym, pumping iron. That perhaps stems from the fact that sports in India is a very competitive field and requires funds and support alongside exceptional talent to succeed. And, if one can’t aim or eventually achieve that progress, this entire effort yields little. Maybe that prompted the family to push him to study hard and get a job in Delhi. After gathering a fair amount of education, Pawan learnt some marketing tricks and began his journey as a modern-day digital marketer. Once a rising field; digital marketing is now an established industry in the post-Covid era. Now guess, how it all converged?
Ankit was a wrestler, interested in bodybuilding. He began making videos in 2017 and soon enough, his YouTube channel garnered a pan-India audience. He played competitive wrestling as well as desi-dangals. However, an injury stalled his growth. While on bed rest, Ankit began reading and understanding what might work in content production. What would be the right flavour for growth? By 2022, his YouTube channel had hit 1 lakh subscribers and his viewers ranged from Jammu & Kashmir to Assam.
While his younger brother also got into making videos, Ankit continued taking inputs from Pawan who was observing the trends on social media. At this point, Ankit observed the 75 Hard challenge and took it up. Many now argue that many in Haryana villages do something similar on a daily basis. But the question is; what helped Ankit stand out?
Ankit was grounded, desi in the truest sense; came across the screen as he was and took up a fitness challenge that many had failed before. And to top it all, he opened his video with ‘Ram Ram’. He also reads part of some Hindu scriptures in the video. For some, it might seem disconnected but millions across the state of Haryana and all over India relate to this appellation. And, it was not something he did to connect with the audience. It was natural. This is how many greet in Haryana villages always. But, never before did it garner as much attention. More so, there was no caste reference in any of the videos. There was no attempt to please a ‘select’ audience. No appeals to Chaudhary, Rao or Thakur. It could be because he is neither but the only reference in his videos was Ram.
Imagine, going to the Chanakya Mall in New Delhi and greeting someone with Ram Ram; you’d be considered uncool if not derided at! But the change had been setting in. The Instagram generation lapped onto Ankit’s Ram Ram and his desi workout videos and India related to it like never before. In many ways, this rise could be attributed to the rise of middle-class India; the rise of Bharat. It is indeed, a clear reflection of Indians coming out and asserting their identity with pride.
Bharat has been rooted and millions across the country may not pro-actively show their faith but the times are changing. This subdued nature was a consequence of civilisation that had been chained for thousands of years. The invasions, attacks and then the colonial ways ensured that the Bharatiyas kept their head down and worked for survival or growth. But, with the progressing times, India is perhaps coming to terms with Bharat and reconnecting with its roots, leaving behind the colonial baggage and asserting itself with pride like never before.
And this change would not have arrived had it not come from the very top. Prime Minister Modi has taken initiatives and given confidence to the new Bharat since assuming office in 2014. It is, indeed, a reflection of his ideas, work and the Panch-Pran that he set for the Amrit Kaal for India.
Arjun Singh Kadian is an academic and policy professional based out of offices in Haryana and Delhi. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18’s views.
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