What is 'virtue signalling'? Zerodha's Nikhil Kamath, comedian Tanmay Bhat decode
Produced by: Business Today Desk Designed by: Manoj Kumar
Nas Daily, Tanmay Bhat, BeerBiceps, Prajakta Koli on Nikhil Kamath’s podcast
Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath and the guests on the latest episode of his podcast ‘WTF is with Nikhil Kamath’, CEO of Nas Company Nuseir Yassin (Nas Daily), content creator and actor-comedian Prajakta Koli (Mostly Sane), content creator and podcast host Ranveer Allahbadia (BeerBiceps), and comedian and AIB founder Tanmay Bhat, spoke about virtue signalling and how that impacts viewership.
Source : Youtube ( Nikhil Kamath )
What is virtue signalling?
For the uninitiated, virtue signalling is a term used to denote public expressions of opinions or sentiments that are expected to portray one’s correct stand or positioning on a particular issue.
Can you fake it till you make it?
Tanmay Bhat said in the podcast that it is quite possible to fake it till you make it but there is the question of sustaining that. “Virtue signalling works, but it creates an expectation out of you that’s hard to sustain because not everybody is as virtuous as they claim to be. But people will like you and they will think a certain way of you,” he said.
Virtue signalling a hack for content creators
Ranveer Allahbadia aka BeerBiceps said that if one spends enough time on social media then the followers eventually come to know the kind of person they are, even with virtue signalling. He said it is a hack but it is a stage that comes later. “Need to stand out first,” he said.
Importance of a large audience
According to Tanmay Bhat, once a creator amasses a large viewership, they can virtual signal. “What’s the point of signalling your virtues in emptiness? You need a large audience to signal your virtue. If you have a large enough audience, you will need to signal your virtue at some point or you will find the need to,” he said.
Audience will ask for virtue signalling
Nuseir Yassin aka Nas Daily said that the audience would end up asking creators for opinions, thereby enabling virtue signalling. “When your audience starts asking you to virtue signal…when your audience starts asking you your opinion,” said Nas Daily, about the certain point when one would need to virtue signal.
When audience expects virtue signalling
“Your audience will expect what they think you will respond to. If you continuously virtue signal your thoughts on political affairs and you keep talking about that and at some point you go quiet, then they will ask you for your opinion,” said Tanmay Bhat.
Key is to be authentic
Nuseir highlighted the importance of remaining authentic in both real and reel lives. “What I recommend to people is that the image they are in real life should be online,” said Nas Daily.
Practice what you preach
Ranveer Allahbadia said that since so much of oneself is out on social media, he tries to be the best version of himself everywhere. “I worked on mental health to talk about mental health content. I won’t make yoga content, until I have mastered yoga and I have begun yoga last year,” said BeerBiceps.
Podcast on building influence
Some of the top content creators, Nuseir Yassin, Tanmay Bhat, Prajakta Koli and Ranveer Allahbadia spoke to Nikhil Kamath about the skills and tools one requires to become a successful content creator and how to understand the mindset of the audience.
