Short video content will only grow in the future, believes Sonal Rana

Video content creation has grown exponentially in the past three years. With telecom services providing unlimited data, the internet has reached tier 2 and tier 3 cities as well, increasing the number of viewers that content creators can reach tenfold.

Sonal Rana, social media fashion influencer and actress, believes short video content is evolving rapidly. "When I decided to step into this profession three or four years ago, it was all about posting your pictures and photoshoots," she said, "but in the past three years, it has evolved a lot. People soon got bored with watching only pictures."

Sonal Rana started creating her own video content because she was always interested in fashion and styling. And a short video is an apt format for content of this nature.

Rana believes video-sharing apps such as TikTok and Instagram played an important role in boosting the popularity of short video content. "It has become more accessible to the common people and now everybody feels comfortable stepping into the world of video sharing," she remarked. "People have made careers out of it."

Asked why people are hooked to short video content, she said, "I feel people connect more with videos than with pictures or blogs because videos are easier to relate to. When you want to spread a message or your opinion in a more constructive manner, videos are the best option, because you are connecting directly with your audience, which means there is less chance of being misinterpreted. Videos also have more entertainment value."

Rana, who regularly uploads videos on fashion and with style tips, admitted it takes a lot of time and effort to make them. "There is so much content out there, one cannot make some crappy video and post it," she cautioned. "You have to put all your effort into each video. [Audience] retention has become a very big issue. People's attention spans have become so short that they often don't watch the entire video. That's why you have to make sure you are literally grabbing their attention throughout the video. But when you get appreciation and people praise your work, it kind of makes up for all the hard work. And that is why we are doing this."

Rana recently featured in a YouTube series called Wild Wild Waste, her first web-series. "It was a great experience," she said. "I was always interested in acting, so getting the opportunity to act in a web show was something I wouldn't have let go of. We shot in Mumbai and had fun shooting for the series."

Recently. UFO Moviez launched a  new video-sharing app called Zinglin. The app stands apart in the crowded market with its USP of allowing content creators to showcase their videos in movie theatres as and when they reopen in the country.

Rana said this could be a great opportunity for content creators, "because showing your content on the big screen in a cinema hall is huge. Everybody dreams of featuring on the big screen, so if the opportunity is presented who wouldn't want their content to be chosen? It will also increase the reach of the creator."

About the growth rate of short video content and its future in India, she said, "It is here to stay for a while because it has only just started booming. It has opened up so many opportunities for all kinds of content creators. There is so much to do as long as you are creative and dedicated to your craft. It's a great opportunity for everybody. It's just a matter of how effectively you use it."