Influencer marketing has been rapidly changing and we had predicted that 2020 will be an interesting year for influencers in India. With the government announcing the ban of over 59 Apps from China, including TikTok, most of us are still trying to accept the news. There were over 180 million, monthly active users on TikTok in India including a number of influencers who gained popularity through the platform. It is certainly going to be a challenge for these influencers to overcome this but we have put together a list of top Indian alternatives to TikTok. If you are a content creator who wishes to continue creating quality content, then this is a must read for you.

Based on our 2020 survey report on influencer marketing in India we know that a lion’s share of these content creators are moving to Instagram and YouTube and few are also moving to the newer alternative platforms, which are listed below:

Instagram and Reels

Based on our survey to TikTok content creators in early Jul 200, we found that many of them are moving to Instagram due to its popularity and features. With the launch of its global product Reels (for short videos) in India on 8th Jul, its likely that attracting these content creators has become a focus for them. In the past Facebook had launched Lasso, to go after this audience so it remains to be seen how this initiative pans out. Reels is similar to TikTok where it allows its users to create 15 seconds video with popular songs, trends, or challenges. The platform lets users shoot video, add filters and music from Instagram’s catalogue and share it beyond the platform. They will also be able to share Reels in explore and on feed with their followers.

Roposo by Inmboi

This is another short-video platform which is available on both Android and iOS devices. It was launched in the year 2014 and it provides some interesting features to its users and is a strong TikTok alternative. It allows the users to create content and add a variety of filters and effects like time-lapse, portraits, natural light, studio light, stickers and many more. They can also watch videos, earn and transfer money via this platform. It currently has over 50 million users and there’s no doubt that it will grow rapidly in the coming years. The seamless user-interface allows its users to create and edit videos creatively and effectively. They can use the app in languages like Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Gujarati, Punjabi, Marathi, Bengali, Malayalam and Assamese which is fantastic for the users.

Josh by Dailyhunt

Dailyhunt, one of India’s largest news aggregation platform has also launched their own short video app, Josh. Having a large base of vernacular readers is a plus for them but this is not their first attempt to launch a video first feature or platform. It remains to be seen if their news audience can be leveraged for video creation and whether content creators will hop on to this app. Umang Bedi, their current MD is the former MD of Facebook India, so he does have experience of scaling up user bases. Currently it is available for android users. Josh is available in Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and English. A unique feature is that the people who have not installed the app can still watch the video from the shared links.

Hotshots by Gaana

Gaana, the platform from the stable of Times Internet has massive reach and they want to leverage this to scale their video first platform, Hotshots. Since they have 150 million users already, they surely have an edge amongst many other apps and they have also managed to rope in top TikTok content creators like Riyaz Aly, Avneet Kaur and Jannat Zubair. Being in the music industry, they are also roping in popular singers onto Hotshots and likely to integrate a much larger collection of music on their new platform. The product experience will consist a host of ‘HotShot Challenges’ in the performing arts like music, comedy and dance by HotShot influencers, celebrities and international artists.

Mitron 

Mitron is a short video and social platform based out of Bengaluru. It is currently available on play store for the android users. It is very similar to TikTok and helps people showcase their skills inline with the theme of light humour. It provides its users an easy and seamless interface which allows them to edit, create and share their videos. At the same time, they can also browse through a library of videos across the globe.

Chingari

Chingari is another app which can be a good TikTok alternative and is available on both apple and play stores.It not only allows you to lip sync to music videos but also lets you browse through other categories like fashion, comedy and vlogging. The users even get rewards if their videos get enough comments, likes and shares which makes the platform exciting. Apart from this, there are over hundreds of filters, visual effects and stickers to make your content interesting.

Bolo Indya

Bolo Indya is a user-generated content platform, similar to TikTok, which enables its users to create two-minute videos. It is available on the play store for android users. Users can share their knowledge, experience, opinions and expertise across different areas. They can also share their videos in local languages which will reach an audience who share similar interests. It has more than 1,00,000 users currently and is expected to grow rapidly with the TikTok app ban.

Sharechat and their new app, Moj

Sharechat is another Indian app based out of Bengaluru founded in 2015 which is available on both iOS and android devices. The firm has invested heavily on technology infrastructure that the app can be used even in areas with poor connectivity. It currently has more than 1 million users and with the popularity of the app increasing nationwide, it is only expected to grow rapidly. The app supports 50-55 different content formats, right from jokes, videos, to health tips, stories and newspapers. It is present in over 15 languages. They also launched their video first app, Moj to go after tiktok content creators as Sharechat is more similar to Facebook than like Instagram and TikTok.

Trell

Trell is a visual blogging platform which is available on both apple and play stores that offers its users a feature to broadcast their explorations in the form of visual blogs called ‘trails’. The trails can be liked, disliked, recommended and so on. The trails are also google searchable. The users can also add personal anecdotes and tidbits in the app. It currently has more than 5 million downloads and is only expected to rise with the TikTok ban.

Cheez

Cheez launched by Cheetah Mobile Inc., is a social video app which allows the users to create, share and discover videos upto 17 seconds. It is available on android devices. It comes with a wide range of features such as live filters, voice changers, stickers and music. Every tool on the app is user-friendly and the users will find it really easy to use it. The editing tools on the app allows the users to trim, merge and adjust playback speed of the content which is a big positive to make some exciting content. The developers of the app hold contests with cash prizes, users can participate in it by creating and sharing videos on it.

Injoy

Injoy is a fun app, available on both iOS and android devices, where the users can easily create, share and download some funny desi memes and comedies. It currently has over 50 million funny videos, 10 million active users in the country and supports 12 local languages. The platform allows users to create and upload short video clips, share trending memes and videos with their friends on Facebook and WhatsApp. The users can also play mini games, quiz and DIY on the platform.

HiPi by Zee5 

This is Zee5’s first attempt with a social platform. It is yet to be launched on the playstore but its likely to have similar features as other apps and it will be interesting to see how they do. The platform will allow its users to create and upload videos between 15-90 seconds and all the videos will first require base approval before going public. Zee5 has also laid stress on its data policy, with data being stored locally. It claims that even the company’s partner entities do not have access to it.

TikTok has definitely made a strong impact on most of us influencers or common people. But with multiple Indian alternatives to TikTok, these Indian apps are going to get the much needed push they need.