Upoma's journey to becoming the quirky 'Bengali Boin'
21-year-old Nusrat Upoma, aka ‘Bengali Boin’, has almost two million followers on Facebook. Her funny and relatable videos are a hit among young Bangladeshi viewers
As a kid, Nusrat Upoma loved watching movies. What she loved more was mimicking actors. Her penchant for imitating facial expressions and body gestures of others would eventually catapult her into the centre of social media attention as your favourite internet comedian - The Bengali Boin.
"People often have the misconception that women cannot be funny. I wanted to break that stereotype. And amongst the sea of comedian 'bhais', I wanted to introduce a relatable Bangalee 'boin'," said Upoma during an interview with The Business Standard.
Upoma, a 21-year-old undergraduate student at Green University, has taken up content creation as a full-time job. She goes by the moniker 'Bengali Boin' and is passionate about entertaining people.
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During her early university days in 2020, she decided to create some short and funny content on a whim. Her skits were received so well that today she has almost two million followers on Facebook. She can also be found on other social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
"I had no idea that people could earn through content creation. I was fond of watching comedy shows online, and the idea of making content was very appealing to me. So, during the pandemic, I made a funny clip using Snapchat filters with no intention of becoming famous. But viewers appreciated it a lot and all the positive responses pushed me to become a content creator," she shared.
Upoma's first video was about how people will forget how to function in society after the pandemic passes. Her latest videos also continue a similar trend, they are always very relatable. She made videos about how Bangalee mothers react to their children's demands, how introverts act when socialising, etc. Sometimes she makes videos of her imitating famous characters. Her sister also lends her a hand at times and joins in.
Success comes with push backs as well. Upoma's account was hacked when she was an emerging content creator with two lakh followers. However, she was determined to shine as a content creator and came back stronger.
"Content creation is not easy. When I was just starting out, criticism really bothered me. But now, I have learned to look past it. I am very grateful for the support I receive from my followers."
As a content creator, Lily Singh, aka Superwoman, is one of the pioneers of playing diverse characters in her quirky videos. In India, we see Kapil Sharma adopting the same strategy in his famous 'The Kapil Sharma Show'.
Inspired by them, Upoma also acts as different personalities in a way that will make Bangladeshi netizens laugh out loud because of the accurate depiction of locals.
"I take Harsh Beniwal's (a famous Indian YouTuber) videos as inspiration as well. From our country, I love Rakin Absar's performances. He is one of the best comedians in the country," she added.
When you pursue a less conventional career path, that too in your early 20s, parents often become worried. It was no different in Upoma's case.
"Initially, my father disapproved of content creation. Over time, as he heard of people praising my work, he eased into it. My mother, on the other hand, was supportive from the beginning. She bought me the first tripod I used for shooting."
She reinforced how people should be aware of the merits of content creation. She said it is a great way to be independent and follow one's dream.
"If you consistently create high-quality content, reputed companies will take notice. I have collaborated with many. But I am also a go-with-the-flow kind of person so maybe in future, I will want to tap into other areas of entertainment. I would love to do OVCs (Online Video Commercial), TVCs and take acting seriously."
Upoma, who has a sunny disposition, advised the young generation to be optimistic.
"Our society creates invisible boundaries when people try to pursue their dreams. But even if the world is against you, follow your dreams for your long term happiness," she advised.
