Indian Gen Z fandom turns viewers into creators and brand amplifiers

New Delhi: Indian Gen Z is no longer just watching videos on YouTube. They are naming their fandoms, running voting campaigns, remixing trailers, organising meet-ups and even earning money from the content they create around what they love, according to YouTube’s Fandom-focused Trends Report 2024 for India.

The report shows how fandom on YouTube has moved from passive viewing to an always-on “participation layer” that brands and creators can no longer ignore. Eighty-seven per cent of Indian Gen Z respondents describe themselves as fans of someone or something, and 83% say they consider themselves creators, not just consumers.

Ninety-one per cent of Gen Z fans have taken part in at least one fan-related activity in the past 12 months, from posting edits and reactions to joining fan communities. YouTube has also become the default home for fan behaviour at scale.

Ninety-three per cent of Gen Z fans in India use the platform at least weekly to consume content related to the people, shows, games or artists they are fans of. And it is not just about the original IP. Seventy-eight per cent say they often spend more time watching content that discusses or unpacks something than watching the original movie, show or music video itself, a crucial signal for marketers about where attention really sits.

The report underlines how deeply this behaviour is shaping identity and community. Sixty-two per cent of Gen Z say they belong to a fandom that no one they know in real life is part of, highlighting how YouTube stitches together niche clusters that would not exist offline.

At the same time, 77% of Gen Z fans say they are part of a fandom with a specific “name”, reinforcing the sense of belonging and shared language that brands often struggle to build on their own. Within this universe, fans are stratifying themselves.

The study notes four layers, casual fans, big fans, super fans and “professional fans” who actually earn revenue from their fandom. Among Indian Gen Z online, 35% describe themselves as casual fans, 26% as big fans, 26% as super fans and 13% as professional fans.

As intensity rises, so does the volume of content they consume and create, and the likelihood that money, not just time, will follow. For brands and content owners, fan-made videos are now a major force-multiplier for cultural moments.

The report points to the trailer launch of Pushpa 2: The Rule as a recent example. Beyond the official trailer and song views crossing 100 million, fans flooded YouTube with reaction videos, breakdowns, memes, dance trends and VFX edits that literally place themselves inside the frames, extending the life and reach of the campaign without any media spend from the studio.

Creators are simultaneously fans and objects of fandom, and they are using that insight to build powerful communities around their own projects. Gaming creator AjjuBhai, who runs the channel Total Gaming, turned a simple “face reveal” into one of Asia’s biggest fan events on YouTube, drawing over 35 million views and hundreds of thousands of comments and reactions.

Another creator, Abhishek Malhan (Fukra Insaan), leaned on his “Panda Gang” fandom to fuel voting drives, watch parties and live reactions during his stint on Bigg Boss, turning a TV format into a fan-led digital movement. At the other end of the spectrum, niche communities are flourishing.

UPSC-focused creator Vijender Masijeevi, who runs the channel PleaseSitDown, has built a 500k-plus community around mock interviews, current affairs and motivation. For many aspirants who have never met in person, the comments section becomes a virtual coaching centre and peer group.

K-pop fandoms such as Blinks (BLACKPINK), Stays and Bunnies are also using YouTube to teach new fans lore, choreography and styling through dedicated creator channels, turning the platform into a one-stop onboarding engine for super fans. Global and Indian brands are already tapping into these dynamics.

McDonald’s leaned into anime fandom with a “WcDonalds” campaign inspired by how the brand is depicted in anime, including its own version of an anime music video. MrBeast teamed up with Indian creator Mythpat to dub a special video in Hindi, acknowledging his Indian fanbase directly.

When streamer IShowSpeed visited India, he turned long-running meme moments into reality by collaborating with singer Daler Mehndi, whose music his fans associate strongly with his streams. Crucially for marketers, 80% of Gen Z fans in India say they like seeing brands engage with the things they are fans of.

The report suggests that creators and brands that plug into existing fandoms, respectfully and creatively, can gain an advantage over those pushing purely top-down campaigns. It also warns that success now depends not only on the performance of original content but also on the volume and health of fan-made content around it.

For BuzzInContent’s audience of marketers and creator-economy stakeholders, the biggest shift flagged by the report is mindset. It recommends that brands loosen control, allow remixing, follow what fans are creating as closely as their own dashboards and actively nurture communities around even the most niche phenomena.