Tensions at the Indo-China border has given rise to a shift in consumer behaviour across India – with one of its biggest beneficiaries being ‘Chingari’, an app co-founded by Odisha’s Biswatma Nayak. The video-sharing app has seen a sharp surge in user downloads as the nation has started boycotting the much-loved TikTok app due to its Chinese origins. As of today, Chingari has surpassed 3 million downloads.
The app was first launched on Google Play in November 2018, whereas it made its way to iOS in January 2019, a company representative told Gadgets 360. Although the app was nowhere near as popular as competitor TikTok, it’s now garnering around 1 lakh downloads and over 2 million views per hour after the central government put a ban in place for a host of Chinese apps.
Adding to its popularity is the fact that the app is available in multiple languages including English, Hindi, Bangla, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Punjabi, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu.
“Since the word spread that Indians now have a homegrown and more entertaining alternative to TikTok, we have been recording traffic beyond expectations on our app,” said Nayak.
The app is supposedly attracting investors as well due to its unique features and growing popularity. “As Chingari is setting new benchmarks, a lot of investors are showing interest in our app. We are holding crucial discussions to get a good investor(s) on board so as to scale up our free-of-cost social platform,” added Nayak.
The app has even caught the attention of Anand Mahindra, one of India’s biggest industrialists. “I hadn’t ever downloaded TikTok but I have just downloaded Chingari… More power to you…” read a tweet from the business magnate.
The makers of Chingari believe that one of their USPs is that in addition to fame, creators also get the opportunity to earn money for the content they upload.
“Chingari pays a content creator on the basis of how viral the video becomes. For every video that one uploads on the Chingari app, you get points (per view) which can be redeemed for money,” said a statement from the company.
While it remains to be seen whether the homegrown company can go on to achieve the heights of its Chinese competitor, Chingari has all the reasons to expect more success to come its way in the short term.