Title: YouTube and the production of online video cultures in Rural South India

Authors: Srikanth Nayaka; Vamshi Krishna Reddy Vemireddy; Prabha Shankar Dwivedi

Addresses: Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati, Yerpedu – Venkatagiri Road, Yerpedu Post, Tirupati District, Andhra Pradesh, 517619, India ' University of Hyderabad, Prof. CR Rao Road, Gachibowli, Hyderabad, Telangana, 500046, India ' Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati, Yerpedu – Venkatagiri Road, Yerpedu Post, Tirupati District, Andhra Pradesh, 517619, India

Abstract: This article examines how a group of villagers in rural South India shot to online fame by posting entertaining audio-visual content on YouTube. Motivated to showcase the countryside culture, villagers began sharing short videos depicting their daily rural lives. Some of their videos have gone viral, garnered millions of views, and amassed thousands of subscribers. Inspired by the positive reception, village video makers have taken their YouTube productions professionally and created a unique brand identity for their media content. From short films to web series, village video-makers produce a wide variety of audio-visual content. Village video creators have accumulated a massive online following, digital stardom, and social media fame. This paper maps the emerging vernacular online video-sharing cultures and the rise of rural micro-celebrities through a close reading of a specific case study, 'my village show, ' one of the popular village-based YouTube channels in South India.

Keywords: YouTube; platformisation; video cultures; vernacular creativity; digital cultures; digital labour; microcelebrity; digital India; South India; global south.

DOI: 10.1504/IJWBC.2024.136669

International Journal of Web Based Communities, 2024 Vol.20 No.1/2, pp.180 - 197

Received: 28 Nov 2022
Accepted: 14 Aug 2023
Published online: 15 Feb 2024 *

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