Eleven social media influencers
offer a peek
into their world
Farrokh Jijina
They lord it over in cyberspace, virtual queens and kings of their realms, with fans ranging from less than 10,000 to over one million. They go by many names: influencers, bloggers, vloggers (video bloggers), content creators. All the influencers that Parsiana spoke to are happy being in the public eye on social media, always perfectly groomed (or sometimes dishevelled to create an effect) while endorsing a culinary creation in some swish restaurant or luxury baggage or a watch or jewelry, a holiday resort or something equally glamorous.
A social media influencer generally has an understanding with reputed or upcoming brands to promote their goods and services on social media platforms like Instagram (IG), YouTube (YT) or Twitter. These arrangements are for a fee, or on barter terms — the influencer agrees to post a certain number of items with a certain frequency in exchange for products. When they are not doing this, they post other "fun” stuff to keep themselves in the public eye. As one influencer told us, "You are only as good as your last social media post.”
1) Maia Sethna 2) Nauheed Cyrusi 3) Tannaz Irani 4) Vahbiz Dorabjee
5) Sanaya Pithawalla 6) Riaan George 7) Khushnaz Turner
8) Zoran Saher 9) Scherezade Shroff 10) Zerxes Wadia
11) Zervaan Bunshah : aiming to "change consumer behavior"
Some did talk of the downside of being social media influencers, but all said it was something they took in their stride. The routes they took to influencer marketing on their platform of choice were varied: films, modelling, television, or just plain old "a friend got me into this,” or "just by chance” or "I always wanted to do this.”
A 2017 article in Forbes magazine calls influencer marketing as that which causes "a specific result: a change in (a consumer’s) thinking or behavior.” As notes Lara Balsara Vajifdar, executive director at media company Madison World (MW), influencers definitely help push sales of a product and build its brand. "When a third person says it (recommends a product or service), it’s always more believable than when you praise yourself… This is still a relatively new field of marketing, though very fast growing but syndicated studies are not available readily,” she informed Parsiana.
Lara’s father and chairman of MW Sam Balsara provided statistics: influencer marketing gets the marketer a return of investment of almost five times what he spends; 67% of brands use IG for influencer marketing; in the last five years hundreds of influencer marketing platforms and agencies have emerged; even celebrities have jumped on to the bandwagon.
Parsiana interviewed 11 Parsi influencers to get their views on the vocation. Their number of followers on IG as on the date of writing is given in parenthesis. Some of the followers may have been with them since their earlier careers, if any. Model and actor Sanaya Pithawalla (12,00,000) seen in MTV’s Warrior High; actor and show biz personality Vahbiz Dorabjee known for her role in television’s Bahu Hamari Rajni Kant (10,00,000); veteran stage, television and film actor Tannaz Irani who began her screen career in 2000 (4,43,000); Scherezade Shroff (2,53,000) who was felicitated at Iranshah Udwada Utsav 2019 as a young achiever; actor and model Nauheed Cyrusi (1,64,000); luxury content creator Khushnaz Turner (97,900); content creator in the travel and fashion space and child star in Deepa Mehta’s Earth Maia Sethna (92,600); relatively recent to the field, Zerxes Wadia (90,200); journalist Riaan George whose mother is a Parsi and who blogs about cars, planes and luxury products (54,200); presenter and motivational speaker Zoran Saher (10,900); and among the newest kids on the block, actor Zervaan Bunshah (7,996).
Parsiana first sent out emails to 13 influencers asking if they would like to be part of the interview process. Actor Shreyas Pardiwalla (95,300) did not respond to our initial email. Content creator Freddy Birdy (2,68,000) requested the email questionnaire but declined stating: "I would not like to be a part of it as I don’t like to reveal any personal details.” From the rest, responses came in via phone calls, emails and even WhatsApp voice notes!
Fashion and beauty vlogger Shroff, who has been a content creator on Facebook for "nearly a decade when the term ‘influencer’ did not exist,” told us that "the key attribute to be a success in this vocation is passion… you need a clear direction for why you are in this vocation…It should not be about how much money you can make or how many followers you can muster.”
As Saher put it, "IG is constantly looking to revamp and upgrade its algorithm (the inbuilt, invisible mechanism that decides which users see what content) that balances the art of throwing light upon those content creators who deserve the exposure because of their exclusivity and uniqueness.” It was no surprise that most of the interviewees preferred the IG platform. Wadia called it the "weapon of choice.” Cyrusi puts out her material only on IG. To Irani, the way IG works is "simple to understand.” Dorabjee said she loves IG as it is "business oriented.” To George, IG is "pure time pass…. I love it,” while admitting he wanted to explore more of YT. Saher said he "liked the way you can post things on your page, but then you can also give a minute-to-minute update of your day through the feature IG stories.” Sethna too likes the current trend in IG to create ‘reels’ which are short, snappy videos "which works well given that most viewers have short attention spans.” She also finds the IG community more supportive than other social media platforms. And Pithawalla loves IG because she loves getting her pictures clicked.
Calling IG snacky ("quick in and out and low involvement”), Wadia stated that on YT "you need to be a little more focused to a genre and then specialize in and around that.” Which is precisely why Shroff actually prefers YT. Opting for long format videos on beauty and travel, she feels YT is the best platform for her. Her recent videos, from a total of 763 on YT, range in length from 13 to 24 minutes.
What it takes
"The influencer must be a subject expert, he/she must appear genuine and must have a reasonable number of followers… He/she must balance the need between saying what he/she genuinely believes in and advertiser interest. He/she now also needs to subscribe to all the (recommendatory) recently issued guidelines by Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) for Influencers,” stated Balsara Vajifdar. These guidelines require an influencer’s posts to be clearly identified as such in one of these five categories: advertisement; collaboration; promotion; sponsored and partnership.
Couturier Ashdeen Lilaowala who recently worked with Sethna to showcase his gara-themed saris told Parsiana on September 14 that while selecting an influencer, he would first establish if there’s a connect with his brand. "It’s important that the person has an appreciation for textiles and craft. And has an innate elegance needed to effortlessly carry off Parsi garas… Maia is the perfect embodiment of the Ashdeen brand. In addition to being elegant and beautiful, she’s also effervescent and fun, just like our brand.”
"There are so many of us out there…the key is individuality and originality…You need to bring a sense of ‘you’…that should be relatable,” narrated Cyrusi. "You have to be consistent and you have to accept criticism” is what Bunshah believes. To Dorabjee, a good influencer needs to be disciplined. "You need to be regular, but also very adaptable…if you realize your audience likes something, give it,” she commented. George too emphasized on discipline as a key attribute. "You need to make sure your posts are shot, you are dressed appropriately, you know just what to post, shoot, when and where. Every minute on the job you need to be alert about how you want your content to appear… It is a very tiring job so you need to be physically fit as well… Always learn, explore and experiment with new ways of shooting content. So, you need to be constantly aware of equipment, trending topics, styles of shooting and of course social media trends.” Pithawalla recommended interaction with her audience "by doing a question-answer or poll or Instagram Live (that feature of IG that allows interaction)… Your audience should feel like you are one of them so that they can relate to you or your life easily.”
Authenticity is a key attribute for Turner and Saher. "It all boils down to how true you are being to yourself,” Saher told us. To Wadia, good influencers are "unapologetic and accepting of themselves…If you are not a fan of yourself, you probably will not have a lot of people choosing to be your followers, unless you choose to be an influencer who makes self-loathing a thing through satire and self-deprecating humor,” he quipped. Knowing what you do and do not enjoy makes it easier for one to make content and even decide the brands you choose to work with in the long run,” Wadia said. "More than anything the key attribute is trust — we should be a trusted voice for our audience,” believes Sethna.
Said Irani: "I am an actor and director… not social media influencer alone… I add a little bridge to the industry… My creativity comes from my work in the theater and television…It is more than me just donning a salwar or a dress.”
"Sort yourself out”
Does the continual focus on external beauty that the vocation demands get to our influencers occasionally? "It IS all about external beauty…We are all turned on by beauty… Why deny that?” queried Irani. "Sort yourself out…tell yourself this is your career,” she stated. George admitted, "There is definitely a lot of pressure to stay fit, to look good, to be perfectly dressed at all times. I feel it, very often. You just have to learn to keep up with the pressure. Much like any other profession — hospitality, acting, movies — that requires you to have a vanity element.”
Shroff stated that "Many of my video blogs are done without my brushing my teeth…There are younger people watching…you cannot always project yourself to be perfect looking… That would make your viewers feel inadequate.” There was a bright note: Wadia stated that the focus within influencers is changing more and more to being yourself and embracing your inner self. "Even beauty influencers are being more natural about their looks, fitness influencers are focusing more on healthy living than just abs, so I think yes social media is heading to a slightly less toxic and a more wholesome place which is good for everyone.” Pithawalla stated her formula is "being natural... Nowadays with plastic surgery and cosmetic surgeries sadly everyone is beginning to look just the same so I think being just the way you are is beautiful.”
Not all rosy
"Insecurities” (written in upper case) was Bunshah’s email response to "what are the downsides of this profession?” "Are you good today? Will you be good tomorrow? Is this the best you can do? Why do I sound like that? Why do I look that way? I should be getting more engagement on this post!” were some self-doubts that he listed. Cyrusi says you need to be constantly watchful of the IG algorithm. "Not too many downsides… only one I can think of is you don’t get any privacy or personal life because everyone wants to know where you are and what you are doing at all times,” said Pithawalla.
Many spoke of trollers who comment rudely, or in an inflammatory or denigratory manner on a post. "There are people who can misuse any social media platform… I do not get trolled…They know ‘This chick is very comfortable in her skin,’” stated Dorabjee. Saher combats his trollers by rising above all the criticism that he reads. "Because I have a sense of humor, I embrace my critics and give them a taste of their own medicine through my witty replies.” To Turner "social media can get all consuming sometimes, you need to be able to take a step back and come back stronger.”
"The constant pressure to look good, to shoot, to create content is quite overwhelming. It can often be a source of great anxiety. Hence, I do not recommend this job for the faint hearted,” George told us. To Wadia, "You end up comparing yourself to other content creators, you start worrying about your next brand association and sometimes you can’t decide where to draw the line in your personal life and social media life.” "Sometimes I feel the need to disconnect and recharge, which I make time for, and come back feeling refreshed and ready to go again,” Sethna told us. The fear of losing the audience is real. The voluble Irani told us that "There are no days when you can let go… You need to know what is trending and to create your own trend…a good scriptwriter helps…or you should have a good creative flair of mind yourself.”
Saying "No, thank you”
Anything that is harmful or I would not want to use, like health supplements, stated Cyrusi when asked what products she would not like to endorse. Alcohol is on Shroff’s proscribed list. "I have a very young audience…so only those brands I truly believe in,” she said. Dorabjee said that while she does get offers to endorse alcohol or gaming products and services, she turns them down. "It has to be about quality over quantity,” she said. Turner is open to "explore any collaboration, as long as it fits into what I feel is authentic and would connect with my audience,” but for George, cigarettes, skin whitening products, "any weird supplements or medications,” are a no-no and for Pithawalla, any products that are "cruel to animals.”
"I can’t and won’t accept any work that disrespects anyone’s feelings,” Saher told us. "If I’m endorsing a product or an ideology, it’s because I truly believe in it myself,” he said. Wadia stated that he has not reached a point where he had to refuse a brand. "You attract your ilk… I function from a place of good thoughts, good words and good deeds, so accordingly my vibe on social media is that of a feel good, life loving person and that is the kind of brands I attract…. If I had to draw the line somewhere, maybe it would be endorsing political parties and cigarettes.” Sethna said she works only "with brands that do not contribute to environmental and social degradation.” Irani will not pitch for collecting funds even for worthy causes. "I do not believe in wholesale charity…you do not have to tell the whole world you are into charity…I will also not endorse anything that is harmful to children as well as gaming products.”
And what would be their advice to wannabe Zoroastrians aspiring to the vocation? The outspoken Irani said, "People don’t want to take advice these days… Or they do not want to work hard… They do not want to wait… But if you really want advice, it is this: Develop a unique style…Do not make excuses like ‘Oh I do not have a good camera or I do not have a good script writer’… Sort yourself out!” "There are very few Zoroastrians in this field, so yes, all are welcome,” stated Pithawalla. Cyrusi cautioned: "There is a lot of hard work that is not apparent that goes behind every free gift that comes to you,” adding that she would encourage anyone and everyone to "go there, as long as they realize that it is not all reality.” Shroff also cautioned about the hard work, but added: "Find your passion… Ask yourself why you want to do this.” Sethna reiterated that it takes time to build an audience: "Be patient, it’s worth the wait.” The job comes with a lot of responsibility — so make sure you are thoughtful about what kind of content you share, she said. "Above all else, use your position to spread positivity and inspire others, even in the smallest way.”
Bunshah added a practical note. "This should start as your side hustle. Have other modes of earning in the beginning…Unless you’re privileged… then burn your parents’ money and buy good shooting equipment.” George cautioned against putting all your eggs in one basket and expecting to earn millions. "Please make sure that you have other sources of income that can sustain you and then do this on the side till you become self-sustaining,” he stated.
All were open to seeing newcomers in the field. Stated Turner: "The more the merrier… There is space for more always as long as you have something new and authentic to offer.” Wadia was a tad more expressive. "Step out of your comfort zones and gymkhanas and experiment. Once you get past the first few barriers of being comfortable with yourself on camera, there are absolutely no roadblocks except how creative you are willing to be.” Opining that there are two distinct paths to being an influencer, he noted, "One, you become an actor or a celebrity… and then you literally just need to show up on social media and boom, you are an influencer. The second, you choose to be a content creator, who makes content; be it YT videos or reels (short videos on IG) and you keep at it whether someone is watching or not in the hope that one of these will go viral and spiral you into influencer territory.”
As stated Saher: "Be ready to take the flak when (your audience) doesn’t like what you’ve put out. It doesn’t mean you should take it personally given how nasty some people can get. But that’s the double-edged sword being an influencer comes with.”