HYDERABAD: YoBlunt, a new selfie-video platform which promises anonymity to users, lets them express themselves freely, without being judged by others. The videos range from a girl cribbing about
disgusting colleagues who don’t flush the toilets to a man ranting about his girlfriend’s annoying
nose-picking habit. The app says it goes beyond just videos and has partnered with NGOs to help those in real distress
We live in an irritating society where a teenage boy like me is not allowed to even ride a bicycle because it disturbs my studies... My ‘moochiwali’ girlfriend is reluctant to get a facial done and I am embarrassed when I have to kiss her...My office colleagues have the worst toilet hygiene and they never flush it. I want to slap them....I want to teach my bitchy neighbour aunty a lesson. How should I do it...
While social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and SnapChat are essentially to express yourself, very few people use it to vent their ire like in the above instances, especially when they want to say that anonymously. Now, a new app called YoBlunt, a selfie-video platform, says it is facilitating people to stay anonymous yet be able to garner the support they want. The above words have been said in selfie videos by the app users.
How it works:
YoBlunt says it is a safe haven where you talk about anything: a bad breakup or a relationship, college, depression, eating disorders, family, work, friend and everything in between. If you want to talk about it, someone else does too. No judgments. No bullying. Just people who get you. Their patented AI-based technology to express anonymously, they say.
A British survey recently concluded that more than 75 percent people present a curated picture of their lives on social media that is better than the real. “On this app, you can be exactly who you are and say what you feel to an empathetic community,” says Ashish Bais, founder of the app. “It’s astonishing to see how liberating people feel when they can speak their minds,” adds Manish Singh, co-founder.
The duo says that given the anonymity it offers, ex-models, roadies, students, young professionals have taken to the app with gusto. They gain comfort from the positive feedback and responses they receive from users that relate to their content. It’s interesting to note that users can’t just post any content. It’s a platform for selfie narration videos only.
YoBlunt has already partnered with NGOs like Vandrevala Foundation to provide resources to users who post messages of distress. The founders assert that they are not after numbers and would much rather focus on bringing value to lives of its users by letting them share their true selves. There are further efforts and social collaborations in the pipeline to offer support to its community at the right time. The app aims to reach 10 million active users over the next three years.
The App experience
Available on Play Store, the Android app YoBlunt with 50,000 downloads so far, has a bunch of videos posted by users. Some choose to be bold and some choose to be anonymous (the videos are blurred or in X-ray/ghost mode). Then users can leave a video or post message/suggestion to them. There is no need to register yourself. Once the app is downloaded, one can click on the video icon and the recording begins. One can record a 25-second video and the screen shows a countdown.
After the recording is done, you can choose the mood (happy, sad, bored, concerned etc), enter the title of the post (eg: My cousin shot a naked video of me) and also mention the group it is related to and you can post it. To check or delete, you can click on the home icon and choose delete. Users who click on the video can like it, send suggestions through video or post messages. If a video is abusive, it can be reported to the admin.
kalanidhi @newindianexpress.com @mkalanidhi