Move over Facebook, Instagram and the likes, in fact, to change the whole idea of 'social network' the support network tagteen is here. Think of it as a platform that allows youngsters to showcase their talent, whether it's teaching, art, cooking, fitness or anything else via one-minute videos or pictures. But why in the world do we need another app? CEO of tagteen Ajit Nayak answers, "Facebook is full of oldies and sponsored content, Instagram is just photos and trolls have taken over Twitter. In this context, tagteen is purely for you to display your talent," says the 39-year-old. Further expanding on what 'talent' encompasses, he says, "Not the short videos on TikTok or its Indian clones that are flooding the nation like Corona fuelling fake stardom, hypersexualisation and counter-productivity, but a genuine talent stage and a voice supporting and promoting real talents." Currently, the start-up and Ajit that started operations in June 2017, are based out of Berhampur, Odisha. They are also a part of myStartUpYatra network.
One of the first things the entrepreneur tells us is about how they prevent fake accounts and underage sign ups (they allow youngsters between 13 and 29 years only) through face detection. Even when you try to sign up, you are not allowed to upload any picture from your phone's gallery, you need to take a selfie. This step goes a long way in providing a safe and secure platform for youngsters. Fitness and yoga from Nikhil, Math from Kuldeep, national medalist Sahil's workout, an amazing drawing show by Anjali, English tunes by Shekinah, groove with Chira from Tripura — the list goes on.
Wondering what we're talking about? This is the Liveshow feature on the app, wherein, at any point from 7 am to 11 pm, a live show is always on. "So far, we have had close to a 1,000 live shows in the last month and a half, where we have launched more than 100 young talents across the country," informs the innovator who graduated in 2007 from University of Technology, Sydney with an MBA. Then there is the Web Show feature. All you folks who have dreams of seeing your work on Netflix or Amazon Prime but you know you will be stonewalled by them, tagteen provides you with a novel chance to upload your work on their platform. "Think of it as a parallel Bollywood and, of course, we will pay you for it," says the innovator who was born and brought up in Berhampur. They have about 100 young participants already contributing to this feature.
Ajit, who is now an Australian citizen, has big plans for the start-up. They want to serve as a recruitment agency where there will be video résumés which will help employers gauge a lot more, like presentation and communications skills. We are certainly excited.
Other Liveshows:
- Dancing sensation Namrata
- Math reasoning with Sumit
- Rockstar Shivam with funky tunes
- Learn CSS from Gaurav
For more on them, check out tagteen.in
