Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath recently engaged in a conversation with YouTube CEO Neal Mohan on his latest episode of his podcast 'People by WTF'. The two discussed a range of topics, from the impact of social media on politics to tips for cracking the platform's algorithm. Apart from the serious topics, Mr Mohan also reflected on his early years in Lucknow, his childhood in the US and how moving to America shaped his interest.
During the podcast, Mr Mohan shared that he was born in India to a father who had studied at IIT. At a young age, he moved to the United States when his father was pursuing a PhD. "So when my parents were grad students was when I was born," Mr Mohan said, adding that he spent most of his childhood in the US. Mr Mohan and his family then moved back to India in 1986. He joined Lucknow's St Francis College, where he spent five years. He then returned to the US to pursue electrical engineering at Stanford University.
"I grew up on Transformers and Star Wars and all of that," Mr Mohan said.
The YouTube chief revealed that moving back to Lucknow in Seventh grade was challenging for him, given his lack of fluency in Hindi. "When growing up in the US, I loved baseball, I loved, you know, Transformers, etc, etc. And then coming here, where you know, I sounded funny. I didn't have, sort of like, those immediate things to connect with people on," he revealed.
Further, Mr Mohan said he was always interested in technology, even as a teenager. "My background is I am a technologist by training. I've been interested in - let's say, passionate about - technology since I was a really young kid," he told Mr Kamath.
"I went to high school in Lucknow. I had a little software startup back in the day, building software for other high school kids and teachers, and so I've always had a deep and abiding interest in technology," he shared.
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Elsewhere in the podcast, Mr Mohan shared the mantra to be successful on YouTube. He emphasised that YouTube rewards creators who genuinely engage with their audience, rather than those who try to game the algorithm. He explained that building a fanbase on the platform required authenticity. "You're not going to build a fan base if you're not authentic. Fans figure that out very, very quickly," he said.
Mr Mohan also highlighted that successful creators thrive because they are passionate about their content, not just their products.
