<p>Comic Saloni Gaur, better known as Nazma Aapi, has created a huge fan base with her YouTube channel and Instagram page ‘Salonayyy’. A contemporary comedian and mimicry artiste, Saloni, who hails from Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, addresses social issues through her videos.</p>.<p>Saloni’s journey began as the character Pinky Dogra, who rants about key developments. However, her breakout character has been an opinionated and a candid Muslim woman, Nazma Aapi, who looks at socio-political issues through the eyes of a middle-class woman.</p>.<p>She has also played other relatable characters and mimics celebrities like Kangana Ranaut, Sonam Kapoor, Ananya Panday and Neha Dhupia. In a chat with <span class="italic">Metrolife</span>, she talks about her videos and more.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>What inspired you to make these short videos?</strong></p>.<p>I wasn’t inspired by anybody or anything. I pursued my graduation course in Delhi; it was a new city for me. I didn’t have much to do, so I began exploring different social media platforms. I realised that one could even upload videos on Instagram. That’s how it all started.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Is comedy your way of expressing your opinion about today’s issues?</strong></p>.<p>Yes, I think so. I feel if I can convey something with a pinch of humour, people will understand it better and not take offence from the first line itself, which most of them generally do.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Why did you choose to be Nazma Aapi?</strong></p>.<p>It was a very random decision. It was Eid 2018 and I decided to make a video on its preparations. I thought the video would look more relatable if I use a Muslim woman’s character. I thought of a name and Nazma sounded familiar. The dialect which I use for Nazma Aapi is spoken widely in parts of western UP and old Delhi. It was interesting, hence I used it.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How many characters do you play?</strong></p>.<p>I’ve created 15 characters so far, but I’ve stopped playing four of them now.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Is there a reason your YouTube channel is called ‘Salonayyy’?</strong></p>.<p>Whenever my mother would get angry, she would scream my name like that. I chose Salonayyy as my Instagram username. When my videos went viral in 2019, I created my YouTube channel and I could not think of a name, so I decided to go with the same handle.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Is comedy a challenging genre to work in? Do you feel it is a more powerful than other formats?</strong></p>.<p>Yes, definitely. Comedy is a challenging genre as it’s not easy to come up with a joke. Comics also have their bad days but you still have to make people laugh, so it is tough. As I haven’t used any other genre, I can’t comment on them. I believe that comedy is more powerful than a serious analytical talk because people tend to get bored easily. And who doesn’t want to laugh?</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Does comedy help boost one’s channel or brand?</strong></p>.<p>This is not the case on social media. Everybody has their own audience. There are different pages on social media — for cooking, choreography and others that provide information about current happenings. They have all become a brand of their own.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How challenging is it to generate content?</strong></p>.<p>It is tough. Your audience wants something new each time. Your content needs to evolve to keep your audience engaged.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How do you choose the subjects that you comment on?</strong></p>.<p>I keep myself updated on whatever is happening in the country and around the world. If I think that people should know about some<br />issue, I make a fun video about it. Sometimes the videos are about random things too.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>What does the future hold for you?</strong></p>.<p>I want to work on a lot of things in the future; one of them is to write a book.</p>
<p>Comic Saloni Gaur, better known as Nazma Aapi, has created a huge fan base with her YouTube channel and Instagram page ‘Salonayyy’. A contemporary comedian and mimicry artiste, Saloni, who hails from Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, addresses social issues through her videos.</p>.<p>Saloni’s journey began as the character Pinky Dogra, who rants about key developments. However, her breakout character has been an opinionated and a candid Muslim woman, Nazma Aapi, who looks at socio-political issues through the eyes of a middle-class woman.</p>.<p>She has also played other relatable characters and mimics celebrities like Kangana Ranaut, Sonam Kapoor, Ananya Panday and Neha Dhupia. In a chat with <span class="italic">Metrolife</span>, she talks about her videos and more.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>What inspired you to make these short videos?</strong></p>.<p>I wasn’t inspired by anybody or anything. I pursued my graduation course in Delhi; it was a new city for me. I didn’t have much to do, so I began exploring different social media platforms. I realised that one could even upload videos on Instagram. That’s how it all started.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Is comedy your way of expressing your opinion about today’s issues?</strong></p>.<p>Yes, I think so. I feel if I can convey something with a pinch of humour, people will understand it better and not take offence from the first line itself, which most of them generally do.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Why did you choose to be Nazma Aapi?</strong></p>.<p>It was a very random decision. It was Eid 2018 and I decided to make a video on its preparations. I thought the video would look more relatable if I use a Muslim woman’s character. I thought of a name and Nazma sounded familiar. The dialect which I use for Nazma Aapi is spoken widely in parts of western UP and old Delhi. It was interesting, hence I used it.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How many characters do you play?</strong></p>.<p>I’ve created 15 characters so far, but I’ve stopped playing four of them now.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Is there a reason your YouTube channel is called ‘Salonayyy’?</strong></p>.<p>Whenever my mother would get angry, she would scream my name like that. I chose Salonayyy as my Instagram username. When my videos went viral in 2019, I created my YouTube channel and I could not think of a name, so I decided to go with the same handle.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Is comedy a challenging genre to work in? Do you feel it is a more powerful than other formats?</strong></p>.<p>Yes, definitely. Comedy is a challenging genre as it’s not easy to come up with a joke. Comics also have their bad days but you still have to make people laugh, so it is tough. As I haven’t used any other genre, I can’t comment on them. I believe that comedy is more powerful than a serious analytical talk because people tend to get bored easily. And who doesn’t want to laugh?</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Does comedy help boost one’s channel or brand?</strong></p>.<p>This is not the case on social media. Everybody has their own audience. There are different pages on social media — for cooking, choreography and others that provide information about current happenings. They have all become a brand of their own.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How challenging is it to generate content?</strong></p>.<p>It is tough. Your audience wants something new each time. Your content needs to evolve to keep your audience engaged.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How do you choose the subjects that you comment on?</strong></p>.<p>I keep myself updated on whatever is happening in the country and around the world. If I think that people should know about some<br />issue, I make a fun video about it. Sometimes the videos are about random things too.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>What does the future hold for you?</strong></p>.<p>I want to work on a lot of things in the future; one of them is to write a book.</p>
