Rising Stars: Meet Sachin Kumar

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sachin Kumar. 

Sachin, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Hi! I’m Sachin Kumar, also known as SCKACHI online, and I’m a 24-year-old social media content creator that makes Indo-American comedy videos on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. I graduated from Michigan State University with a Neuroscience degree. 

I was born in Fort Dodge, Iowa, moved to Amsterdam, then to Michigan, and am now based in Los Angeles. Growing up in Iowa, there wasn’t much creativity and oftentimes I felt a lot of racism. Because I went to a Catholic school, we had Mass every Wednesday and when it came time to give me the bread and grape juice, they would skip over me in line. I even recall knocking on my friend’s door and him responding with “my parents told me I’m not allowed to hang out with you anymore.” Because of these, I felt embarrassed about being Indian as I associated all of my bad experiences with my skin color. 

Fast forward to when I moved to Amsterdam, I went to an international school with people from all countries and ethnicities. This is when I started art. I made a sculpture of a bull and cowboy that represented my hometown, Fort Dodge, which was ranked #2 in the Amsterdam art contest. This experience propelled me to start making videos with my brother and cousin. We used make all kinds of videos from karate videos to Steve Irwin-style, nature videos. These experiences I had in Amsterdam made me really appreciate art. When I moved to Michigan, due to my Indian friends, I found it “cool” to be Indian. I began to unite my creative side with my newly found interest in culture. I started off acting in college and traveling around the world and vlogging my experience. 

When I was in college, I was pre-med and ready to go to med school. Once quarantine started, I realized I love content creation and want to showcase Indian content as Indians were underrepresented in mainstream media. I ended up dropping pre-med and started to make TikTok videos showcasing my funny, relatable experiences Indian American people go through. My videos started taking off and I began gaining a following. It was amazing to know that there were so many that could relate to my content and it made me feel as though I had a digital community. Through my experience as an AAPI creator, I have had many amazing experiences such as partnering with a scholarship company, Bold, to create my very own scholarship. The scholarship was called the “Creative Expression Scholarship” and was designed for high school students to showcase their creative side. Because of content creation, I now live in Los Angeles and have collaborated with many people in my community. It’s nice to know that I can be a part of a movement to showcase South Asian talent to the world and create change. I eventually want to create an agency that primarily focuses on providing South Asian creators with resources to help facilitate their growth as creators as that’s something that I never had. I want to focus my energy on giving back to my community. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Several struggles along the way! First was simply my Indian identity – I was embarrassed to be Indian just because people made me feel that way. On top of everything, at the time, there wasn’t much Indian representation in mainstream media so I had a hard time finding people to look up to in this space. An additional struggle was societal pressure. Making videos online, especially in my community, was something that was super foreign. Everyone had traditional goals/ambitions (i.e., go to school and become a doctor, dentist, lawyer, etc.). Whereas I always felt there was more out there and deviated from the path constantly to pursue art. Lastly, I took content creation seriously at the worst time possible. I graduated college in May of 2020, a few months after COVID hit. I also made the decision to drop my medical studies to focus on other career paths – the problem was, there were no opportunities available because of COVID. This was super stressful as I did not know what I wanted to do and I felt very alone. Through this though, I focused a lot on making videos as it was one of the few things that brought me joy and one of the few forms of entertainment I had during quarantine. Thankfully, I did this because it shaped the entire course of my life. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in comedy.

I am known for my impersonations of my mom and dad.

I’m proud of the fact that I can showcase Indian culture in a fun, comedic light rather than in a history book. I’m super proud of the fact that even my non-Indian friends can watch my content and get a dose of what my life is like as an Indian American. 

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
My biggest advice is keep going! Consistency is key and will help you in anything in life. To date, I’ve posted over 1000 videos and I am still figuring it out. Just keep exploring your artistic side and don’t worry about the numbers. As long as you’re having fun, that’s all that matters. 

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sckachi/?hl=en
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/SCKACHI
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@sckachi?lang=en