Remember PewDiePie? He is the one that India’s soap queen Ekta Kapoor had engaged in an online battle with not too long ago. Well PewDiePie is back in the headlines in India this time because his position as the most subscribed YouTube channel in the world is threatened by an Indian entity: entertainment channel T Series.
The British-Swedish YouTuber Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg goes by the name of PewDiePie and his funny, irreverent videos have made him the king of YouTube. Using little more than a webcam, his popularity has risen to a staggering 70 million subscribers recently.
…So were the legions of his fans! They loved the fact that their fave YouTuber was also the top YouTuber and had been for a very long time!
PewDiePie realised that his crown wasn’t safe when T Series kept gaining subscribers at an amazing rate (currently just short of the 70 million subscribers mark). T series is staple Bollywood fare: hit songs and even some (forgettable) feature films. T series is followed by Justin Bieber with 41 million subscribers, Canal Kondzilla with 40 million subscribers and five minute crafts with 35 million subscribers.
Bitch Lasagna is the diss track (yes there is this phenomenon where people make tracks just to ‘diss’ or disrespect opponents) that PewDiePie made. He exhorted his supporters to get more subscribers for his videos so that he would remain the YouTube king. Even the diss track has over 31 million views; he is simply that popular!
Not known for his self-effacing nature, PewDiePie is delighted to cross the psychological barrier of 70 million subscribers and feels that 30 million more is just a matter of time.
Fans are also worried that PewDiePie will be toppled from pole position and want to prevent this. One supporter bought billboards, did radio ads and made a TV appeal to try and get people to subscribe to this channel; to prevent T series from overtaking it.
Supporters of PewDiePie are doing all they can to keep him ahead. They see this as a battle between a lone, independent creator and a media machine with a corporate entity supporting it. He has fans all over the world and they are all rooting for him… Indians too! They think of this as a ‘cause’. Its all a little nuts.
It is all a bit nuts!
The gap is closing; T Series is gaining on PewDiePie. Internet and media pundits feel that it is only a matter of time before T Series overtakes him… if the predictions are anything to go by, T Series will be the new No.1 by the end of November.
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