Maitreyi Ramakrishnan talks Instagram, life, and building great relationships online | Tech Reddy

Chances are, if you check Instagram or Netflix with regular features, you haven’t seen Maitreyi Ramakrishnan in the past few years.

Teen comedy breakout star Mindy Kaling I never did, Ramakrishnan has become a Gen-Z icon, an inspiration for South Asian youth, and a unique on-screen talent. The 20-year-old was famously selected to play Devi Vishwakumar from 15,000 audition tapes. Since then his popularity has blossomed.

This is not evident on Ramakrishnan’s social media platforms, where the young actor has many followers. On Instagram, she boasts 4.1 million followers, who see her growing career, her connection to cosplay, and her adventure. Here he reconnected with his creative colleagues, such as Anu Chouhan, a Tamil artist who created a piece inspired by Ramakrishnan’s. NIE mood. The couple ended up meeting for bubble tea, after the actor saw the artist’s Instagram.

This is what Ramakrishnan said when he launched the #ExtraordinaryConnections campaign, in collaboration with Upworthy, a platform dedicated to good storytelling, and Meta. The campaign invites people, all over the world, to share the same message about the relationship through Instagram and other Meta apps.

Ramakrishnan’s online style is polished and fun, and he lends himself to the campaign, hoping to increase social and community engagement on social media. . Here, Ramakrishnan talks to Mashable about his own relationship with the internet and how he fostered a healthy relationship with the internet. Also, he digs into Devi’s Instagram image (hint: lots of thirsty snaps).

Meera Navlakha: The first season of I never did came at the beginning of the pandemic, and there was a lot of reaction on social media. What was that experience like?

Maitreyi Ramakrishnan: A lot. It was a great experience, because we didn’t get the red carpet, or the premiere, at that special moment. So at first, this little thing looks like it. You can’t imagine that millions of likes and comments have millions of people. Around Season 2 is when I realized this was serious.

The power of social media helped fuel the push I never did to a large audience, especially to the world. Instagram’s reach for a global audience is fantastic. It’s a double-edged sword because it’s weak at first. But I really appreciate how the show got out there and how many people read about it. The amount of Netflix viewing groups I’ve done on social media — I’ve lost a lot of people’s viewing groups after they sent me a link on Instagram. That was really fun.

The way you use social media has changed a lot since then I never did?

Yes, absolutely. Before, it was just me and my friends. My social media feed is just, you know, pictures of the family or myself, birthdays, and my dog. Now that I’ve said it this way, it’s the same thing. But I think I can use social media in an interactive way, if necessary. There are more details.

You have become a popular role model for many young South Asians. Have you been able to connect with some of these fans on social media?

Yes, it’s true. That happens with the good old news and whatnot, but also with the use of “questionable stickers”, even Instagram Live. I love doing a good old fashioned Instagram Live, because you get to see: what are people talking about? What images are you referring to?

You’ll also see fan art and edits, and you’ll see how excited people are for the show. What I love is when the trailer drops, and then people try to analyze the trailer and form their own theories. But they also interact with your personal life [on Instagram] in a way that makes sense to you. I like social media, you can control how much of your personal life you put out there. You can invite people into situations where you want them to ‘hello, come in’.

And have you been able to connect with other artists and artists?

Yes! In the past I never did, I really wanted to get into digital art and animation. I discovered a lot of cool video artists through Instagram, so I was inspired by their art. Finally, I can talk to them I never did. And with actors and other people in the creative field, I’ve become more involved in the industry. I always connect with new people and see what creative things they are doing.

Who are some of the best people to follow on Instagram?

Yes, it’s great, because it’s good, it’s good, it’s fun. It’s nice to have content on your feed. Every time you sniff the first thing on your feed it’s really sad or something. You can’t have too many good results on social media. But I have to say, I like following my friends and people I know well.

Have you ever found it difficult to stay true to yourself on social media? That is something that many of us struggle with.

Oh, yes. You need to find your voice, or rather, find your balance. I think everyone has their own boundaries and their own characteristics of what works for them. Some people really like to be on social media all the time and want to post themselves on social media. It goes back to our discussion about how much of your personal life you want to put out there. For others, they don’t need it at all. Like many Instagram artists and digital artists – they don’t post pictures of themselves. It’s mostly their art, and rightly so. So it’s about finding your own personal balance.

“I think everyone has their own boundaries and their own characteristics of what works for them.”

I have to find out for myself, and know when I need to take a break and sometimes say ‘I don’t want to post about it’, ‘I’m skipping social media for one time, I’ll see you later.’ Some people can do it. it’s just knowing how to take those breaks, whether you read them or not. You can create your own Instagram – mine is mostly my family and pictures of fun times.

You’ve read about how “complicated” names can be and the importance of pronouncing people’s names correctly. Can you tell me about speaking on social media and why you chose to do so?

I am very happy to have the position that I do, and the ability that I do. I know a lot of people would like that platform and the opportunity to talk about things like talking about the importance of pronouncing one’s name correctly and the identity that comes from a name. It’s something I really like, something I’m really passionate about, and I really believe in it. So, having a conversation is very true to my social media persona.

I think that when you think about something, there are other people out there who have an idea too. It should be. That’s what social media is all about, right? You can publish what you care about, and there’s a very good chance that other people will come in there and hear the connection – and find it. A lot of people have seen me talk about my name, and they felt validated if they had a difficult name, and they relate to this.

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What do you think Devi’s Instagram account will look like?

Oh my god! There are probably many TikTok dancers who suck. There are many videos and TikToks, mostly dance. It has many features and lip sync audio. He also gives the traps of thirst, and truth, power to him. I will follow him. It’s so funny.

How do you think young people can increase healthy relationships on social media?

An important part of all of this is staying safe online. As such, don’t be put off by potential connections. You need to stay safe and stay informed. I think the biggest thing for me about building healthy relationships on social media and having a good relationship on social media is knowing what’s fake and what’s not. At the end of the day, there is life beyond that, and you have to live with it.

If I go to hell with everything and every post I post, worrying about things like ‘Oh, will people like it? Will people think this is strange?’ — I lose myself. Some of my favorite posts are by myself at a Raptors game with my hot dog. That is Maitreyi at its core. I love hot dogs. I liked it, three. So I’m there at concerts or at the Nintendo store. That’s me in my body. It’s not me reading it and thinking ‘hopefully, everyone will like it.’ It’s just me thinking: this is my hobby and I had a lot of fun with this photo. Hopefully, people will be happy. I always connect with myself and what I like and send it there.

Have you received any great advice from a mentor or other social media influencer?

I seem to know a lot of actors who just stay away. In all honesty, I was reassured when I thought things were getting tougher, because sometimes it was really good. Sometimes social media can be overwhelming, especially when time falls. Sometimes, all the attention and all the notifications are flooding in at a moment’s notice. Before, I was like, I can handle it. But, when I hear others take a break, turn off their phones and listen to those messages, I know I can do it too. You can still enjoy social media. I’m still working – I love social media. I recently posted a fun video of Darren [Barnet] and I, because that’s the kind of thing I like to get that out there. I will do what is best for me. That’s what I learned.

What are your tips for keeping yourself in love while online?

Hmmm. I think it’s self-examination. Do what you like. It’s easier said than done. There are many pressures from all different corners of our lives that make us want to bend to the needs of others. Do you think this is good? I would say mostly, I wish people were more honest on social media. We watch other people’s feeds and find it fun and interesting. But there are many things behind the scenes that we don’t know. We all put this forward and want confirmation. We all end up comparing ourselves. We need more honesty and self-affirmation.

Thank you so much for telling me!

Of course! I hope that makes sense, because social media is a tough job. It’s very difficult. We’re all just trying to make sense of ourselves.