From having a part-time job to gaining 10 million subscribers on YouTube, Desi Gamers, aka Amitbhai, is one of the most renowned personalities in the Free Fire community.
In this 10 million special article, Amitbhai takes us through the ups and downs of his journey, his thoughts on the Free Fire community, and the release of Battlegrounds Mobile India.
The following is an excerpt of the conversation.
Q: So, how do you feel about hitting the 10 million mark? Tell us a bit about your journey and experiences with the same.
Amitbhai: I'm at a loss for words. I achieved 10 million subs with lots of ups and downs. I never imagined I'd reach this milestone just two to three years after starting my YouTube channel. At the time, I was also working part-time, so I used to make videos at home and post them at the office.
I recall an incident where everyone used to get a bonus during Durga Pooja, but I didn't because I hadn't completed one year at work. I didn't like this concept, which led me to leave my job out of frustration. I started playing Free Fire and posting content based on it and quickly had 100K subs.
I am in a good space now and would like to try out more and more new games. Until now, I'd only played a few games like Free Fire, GTA, and Minecraft, but this year, I'd like to broaden my horizons.
Q: Tell us a bit about your school days.
Amitbhai: I got 65 percent in 10th grade and 75 percent in 12th grade, so I was basically an ordinary student. I am not in touch with many of my classmates; everyone is doing well in different fields.
I went to three different schools, one until fifth grade, another till tenth grade, then 11th and 12th grade at another school, before heading to college. I had a lot of friends, but I don't know where they are now.
Q: With the release of Battlegrounds Mobile India just around the corner, what are your thoughts on Krafton's special Indian title?
Amitbhai: PUBG Mobile has been teasing its return for a long time, and with all of the hype surrounding the game, I'm eager to get my hands on it.
I genuinely hope that the game returns soon, as the Indian gaming community had reached a high point, with PUBG Mobile making a significant contribution. Still, the title was suddenly banned, causing a setback for everyone.
As a creator, when I consider fellow creators in the PUBG Mobile community, I notice that their channel growth has slowed or has begun to dwindle.
With the game's return only for the Indians, i.e., Battlegrounds Mobile India, everyone affected will have another chance to bounce back.
Q. Who is your favorite PUBG Mobile content creator?
Amitbhai: I genuinely enjoy Ronodeep "Rawknee" Dasgupta's content and was inspired to create my channel after watching him.
Q. What impact do you think the release of Battlegrounds Mobile India will have on Free Fire?
Amit Bhai: As far as I can tell, there won't be much of an impact on Free Fire because the audience of PUBG Mobile either migrated to COD Mobile or other games during the ban or quit playing altogether.
Thus, there won't be much of an impact on Garena's title as both games look similar but are very different in terms of game style/playability.
Q. What do you think are the significant differences between the PUBG Mobile and Free Fire creators?
Amitbhai: In the PUBG Mobile community, creators are known for their entertaining talents or gameplay.
The main distinction is that on Free Fire, many creators have gone ahead and just done giveaways. In addition, when compared to PUBG Mobile, the Free Fire audience is younger.
There are only a few creators in Free Fire who are popular because of their gameplay.
Q. What has been your favorite collaboration that Garena did to bring characters in-game?
Amitbhai: Each Free Fire character has a unique talent, but I'd pick Chrono, based on Cristiano Ronaldo, the famous football player, as my favorite because of his exceptional skills.
Q. As you are a part of Garena Free Fire's Partner Program? Please tell us a little bit about your experience as a member and what special privileges the creators receive.
Amitbhai: Creators in the Partner Program get early access to various in-game updates or items, and we are given a seven to ten-day notice and are urged to spread the word to our audience. New features in the game are also promoted, and we are also given special benefits.
Q. There have been many controversies happening in the Free Fire community lately. How do you deal with the ones revolving around you?
Amitbhai: Some people will dislike you whether you do good or bad things, so it is better to smile and let go.
Q. Team Elite and Galaxy Racer from India could not participate in the Free Fire World Series in Singapore due to covid restrictions. What are your thoughts, given that players from both teams are significant members of the community and close to you?
Amitbhai: I felt very sad for both the teams as they couldn't represent the country on such a global stage. I firmly believe they would have got laurels for the country as they have shown remarkable performance in previous tournaments such as the FFIC.
I have also been to Indonesia to participate in a tournament as an influencer. At that time, Indian teams were lacking in strategies, but now, the esports scene is totally different in India.
I have cast a lot of games and have got a chance to understand and analyze the game. Now, there is high competitiveness among teams, as every team has a fixed drop location, everyone avoids initial fights, takes different rotations. There is a role set for every team member, so things are pretty much set in stone.
Q: Have you ever thought about entering the esports scene along with content creation side by side.
Amitbhai: I've always wanted to be a content creator, which is why I haven't focused on the esports side of the game.
Actually, I used to play on my phone since internet connectivity at my location is terrible, and I also wanted to stream my gameplay. When I played on my PC through ethernet, the ping was 50, but it was 200 on my phone, which significantly impacted my gameplay and frustrated me immensely.
As a result, I've moved my focus to simply playing the game on PC due to the low ping. That's why I couldn't participate in the esports side because Free Fire is a mobile esports game. Although I sometimes play on mobile during invitational tournaments.
Q. Where do you see yourself in the next five years? Do you intend to focus on content creation, or is there another business plan or idea?
Amitbhai: I haven't thought much about the business side but am focusing on content creation. However, my new goal is to focus on solid content quality rather than running behind numbers.
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