The Making of a ‘Kalkharab’ : Yawar Wani

Yawar Wani is part of Kashmir’s most entertaining band of YouTubers- Kashmiri Kalkharabs, who are known for their over-the-top comedy skits and making people laugh their heart out.

From this group Yawar Wani has emerged as one of the most versatile actors in the valley today.

Kashmiri Kalkharab is currently one of the biggest YouTube channels in Kashmir and the first one to receive the coveted silver play button in J&K. This despite facing numerous internet shutdowns and lockdowns which affected their content.

Yawar Wani is one of the core members of this band of jesters and has shown is acting skills ranging from playing an old Kashmiri man to a teenage girl.

The idea for Kashmiri Kalkharabs wasn’t a thought out one, it burst into life as randomly as anything. In 2016, Parvaiz Ahmed filmed his cousin Showkat Ahmad while he was attending customers at his grocery store. While doing so, Showkat was cracking jokes with the customers and having hilarious interactions.

Soon, he uploaded the video on Facebook which went viral with people showering their love on these new age Kashmiri actors and thus began the most popular Kashmiri YouTube Channel.

After the first video there was a demand from people online to upload more videos and the group duly obliged to much success and adulation.

Their comedy skits became so popular and influential that doctors said that their patients felt better even in their misery after watching videos of ‘Kalkharabs‘.

For Yawar his own journey has been full of ups and downs, from facing early criticism for his skits to being mocked by his relatives, yet the young comedian persisted.

Yawar narrates how consistency in content making is key and coming up with fresh ideas is always a challenge that some new YouTubers struggle with. For him it is important to come up with content for not weeks but months as it means you are always one step ahead.

Apart from acting, Yawar has also taken to singing something he says he always wanted to do. Recently he came up with his song titled ‘Waade Mushthei’ which has over 1 million views in a short span of time.

The Kashmiri Kalkharab star also says that making content in Kashmir is a challenge in itself since one has to be considerate of the society we live in as well as the restrictions Kashmiris face as content creators. He says it easy to make people laugh using vulgarity but it takes real effort to bring a smile to faces of people especially in a place like Kashmir.

Yawar Wani has excelled in his domain and says everyone should find their niche and strive hard for success in that. He believes that Kalkharabs and other Youtubers are doing a commendable job in the valley and deserve plaudits and appreciation.

Yawar hopes to keep making videos which help people shake of the stress of everyday life and we hope he and his truly Kalkharab team entertains us for years to come.