(August 10, 2024) During a podcast with the Japanese Ambassador to India, YouTuber Mayo asked, “You have been sharing fun videos of eating pani puri and other street foods on social media. Why do you think it’s important for an ambassador to use social media and post cultural content?”
Ambassador Hiroshi Suzuki responded with a smile, “Through social media, I can reach millions of people whom I don’t know. My wife and I both love India – its amazing diversity in culture and traditions. We want to use social media to express our love for India. And if someone who had no interest in Japan stumbles upon our content and becomes interested in our country, that’s all the better.”
His response echoed the thoughts that led Japan native Mayo to start her YouTube channel ‘Mayo Japan’ in 2018, shortly after graduating with a degree in Hindi. Today, the fluent Hindi speaker is one of the most famous Japanese YouTubers in India with close to three million followers.
YouTuber Mayo | Indian Culture | Global Indian
Strengthening India-Japan ties in her own way
Her videos, which showcase dance, food, pop culture, travel, and other facets of life in India and Japan, inspire fans in both countries to explore and learn about each other. Through her content, she not only entertains but also tries to develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of the cultural nuances that define each nation. Mayo views her YouTube channel as a bridge between the two countries, keeping both sides informed about the latest trends and events, and helping to strengthen the bonds between the two cultures.
Love for India and the taste of success
Inspired by her father’s deep affection for India and his passion for Himalayan climbs, Japanese national Mayo chose to pursue a major in Hindi at Osaka University. “My father said, study Hindi because India is a very interesting country and you should travel to India.” Mayo’s choice was also driven by a desire to learn a language uncommon in Japan. With a background in ballet, her love for dance naturally extended to Indian dance forms, complementing her study of the national language of India.
Following her graduation in 2018, Mayo secured a job at a consulting firm while simultaneously launching Hindi lesson videos aimed at Japanese viewers. The positive response encouraged her to expand her audience, eventually reaching viewers not only in Japan but also in India. It led Mayo to diversify her content to cater specifically to Indian audiences. “It took courage because I wasn’t very confident about my Hindi speaking ability back then,” she revealed in an interview.
A year after launching her channel, her subscriber counts skyrocketed tenfold to 50,000, after a video showcasing the festival of Holi celebrated in Tokyo’s Nishi-Kasai district, which hosts one of Japan’s largest Indian communities, went viral. Since then, Mayo has become a well-known figure in promoting Indian culture as a foreigner.
“When I visit India, I get recognised on the street several times a day,” remarked the YouTuber whose videos have generated millions of views. Apart from Mayo Japan, she runs two more YouTube channels – Ani Mayo channel and Learn Japanese with Mayo & Indu.
Challenging stereotypes
When Mayo creates videos about India for her Japanese audience, she makes a conscious effort to avoid stereotypes. Likewise, in her videos about Japan for Indian viewers, she strives to showcase a variety of perspectives, steering clear of stereotypical portrayals. Just as she dislikes the tendency to group diverse nations under the label ‘Global South,’ she is careful to avoid generalisations about India. “It’s a huge country with a variety of people. I don’t like to call India a developing or emerging country. Sure, there are people with low income in the country but there are billionaires as well,” she remarked.
Mayo believes that looking at a country without the lens of any stereotypes, gives a better view of its various characteristics.
YouTuber Mayo | Indian Culture | Global Indian
The positive side of India
The YouTuber keeps on travelling back and forth between Japan and India. “I have learned the importance of being assertive and hungry (to achieve) like Indians. For example, they are clever and tough at negotiating with their potential employers. They tell recruiters what salary and benefits they were offered from other companies so that they can create competition among their prospective employers,” she mentioned talking about one of the qualities she loves about professionals in India.
One other aspect that Mayo admires about India is the growing number of people who are comfortable speaking English, a skill less common in Japan. While she acknowledges that the concept of punctuality in India may differ from that in her native country, she also recognises that Indians tend to have greater access to the latest information and technologies from the United States compared to people in Japan.
“Indians have a big heart. They are more helpful towards strangers and accept outsiders more wholeheartedly,” she said. The YouTuber who works with the aim of strengthening Indo-Japan ties hopes that people from both countries will develop a deeper interest in each other, and develop greater mutual understanding and connection.
