On Our Radar: Meet the trailblazers who are shaping the future of content creation.
Comedy content creation can be a challenging but rewarding process. It requires a good sense of humour, creativity, and the ability to connect with an audience. And guess who has that in abundance? Sufiyan Junaid! From being a theatre actor to working in radio and advertising, Sufiyan’s journey towards content creation is an extremely interesting one. His Instagram page and YouTube channel are a testament to his wit and comedic timing.
Comedy may be one of the most loved genres, but it is an equally tough one to crack. Comedy content creators make use of various formats like videos, memes, sketches, stand-up performances, parodies, and more to create humorous content that entertains their audiences. Sufiyan brings all of this together to produce rib-tickling content that will leave you in splits and is bound to go viral. The beauty of his sketches is that they will make you laugh, but also make you take a beat to think about the topic he addresses.
Right from his FilterCopy and TVF videos to the political satire sketches to his signature dark humour content and collaborations with other creators, Sufiyan is gifted with the ability to resonate with a wide range of audiences. The Social Nation team had the opportunity to chat with Sufiyan Junaid who took us through his amazing life and content creation journey.
Can you tell us about your background and journey?
I’ll be very honest, my background is like a bhel, there is a little bit of everything and it’s a mess haha! After studying mass media, I did theatre for a year, then worked at a radio station, and then I joined an ad agency and left that in three months. When lockdown happened, I decided to try out content creation because I really saw it as a great way to practice my writing and editing! Now Instagram is like my lab, I try things, experiment, and see what works and what doesn’t. The cool bit is, there’s an audience in this lab and they’re quite nice, we laugh along when we fail but also when it works out, it’s a party!
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How and when did the idea of content creation come up? And why comedy?
I never saw myself as a person who could do comedy, I always wanted to be a drama actor/ writer, basically a wannabe Al Pacino or a wannabe Nawazuddin. One fine day RJ Glenn asked me to write 10 jokes on “Mumbai traffic” for a radio segment and I was worried. I ended up writing whatever came to my mind, and then he just put me on air and I had to say them regardless of them being funny or not. That made me realise that comedy is difficult but therapeutic, it makes you see things in a lighter way. I never took myself seriously after that and the sad part is, no one did lol. But here we are! Content creation happened and it was a great way for me to express what I was feeling and to practice my skills, and we’re still learning!
You have decided to pursue this field and become a full-time creator. What made you take this step?
There was not a particular moment that made me think “Oh I’m gonna do this full time”, I was going with the flow and we’re still flowing… sometimes drowning as well and that’s fine. I started this for myself, but now I’m so happy that we have an audience and I really wish to give some quality content by not just making them laugh but also think and feel.
How do you come up with your concepts? What is your process?
I can’t really explain the random videos that have gone viral haha! I just get a random joke in my head and I take out my phone and shoot it even if I’m in the shower. But talking about the videos that have a concept, and a story – I go for a walk and have random conversations with myself, I laugh with myself and I end up looking like a maniac on the road but then I just get home, script it as a scene and voila! we have a sketch ready.
With content creation turning into a whole industry now, how do you think you can stand out as a creator and evolve?
By trying not to stand out? I am quite confident about the way I am and I feel that’s enough for me to find my people. Yes, the writing and the execution has to be relevant and that’s something that comes with rewriting your stuff again and again, and yes… honesty. If I’m not honest with myself about what I’m doing, it shows, and that’s something I would never feel happy about.
Which creator’s work do you follow the most? Who is your inspiration?
There is a mix of many creators! Some inspire me with writing, some with acting and some of them are just my favourites because of the way they are.
American Baron has been an inspiration since a very long time, Kanan Gill is someone who I really admire, Bo Burnham is someone I really respect because he tries to push all the boundaries around comedy! Fellow creators like Aapka Jags, Ex dee Anas, Aatmeme , Dharna and others also inspire me in many ways.
Name 3 content creators you would love to collab with.
1. Theshehzadshow
2. AmericanBaron
3. Shahrukh Khan
(Okay maybe the last one is a little far-fetched but worth a try? Also, I know he’s not a creator but “kuch sapne technical nahi hote, sirf emotional hote hai” haha!)
What’s next for Sufiyan?
I have no idea, and I love that actually! I’m here for a scuba dive and I’m gonna dive deeper! I’m doing theatre again and you can watch me perform at the Prithvi Theatre on the 19th of August in a play called “Go With The Flow.” I’m working on a musical comedy and also planning to do live shows with it. There’s an audio show I’ve been doing called “Point Pe Aao Na.”
Can’t really put a finger on a specific thing but there’s a little a bit of everything I want to try along with creating. Maybe I’ll start dancing, directing, doing magic maybe? Not to sound pompous but guess I do that already haha. See you on the other side!
Well, we’re sure that you would agree with the fact that this was an extremely fun and intriguing way to get to know what goes on in Sufiyan Junaid’s crazy mind! We look forward to being a part of his journey and watch more killer content by him.
