Exclusive: No Influencer is Talking About Geography the Way I Do, Says Kavya Karnatac

Kavya Karnatac aka KK Create is revolutionizing the rules of education as a Geo-Educator. She is one of India's fastest flourishing educational creators who hit 1 Million followers in just 10 months. Her content is rooted in the history and geography of India and the World, indulging her audiences in the colourful chronicles of every city and country.

We have connected with her for an exclusive conversation about her content creation journey. Read below the exclusive chit-chat with the influencer.

What inspired you to start your content creation journey?

Creating content has always been a part of my life. I had been teaching my classmates in school, I was extensively involved in street theatre and drama in college, and even in my master's I was extensively involved in building documentaries and filmmaking on the streets.
But the content I am making today is an amalgamation of all this plus the people around me. I always say that my mother is my biggest inspiration. She has been a teacher for the past 20 years and all these years she has been teaching for 15 hours daily. She has been the beacon of curiosity in life and a role model for hard work.

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A post shared by Kavya Karnatac (@kk.create)

 
How do you come up with your daily content ideas?

All my ideas stem from the conversations I have with my friends. But I also have very technical mechanisms in place, where every hour, every day I allocate time to read and catch up on news and podcasts that I like. I also have an Instagram group with myself and a sheet where I jot down my ideas and inspirations and bookmark stuff that I find interesting on the internet as well.
 
What kind of challenges do you face as a content creator? How do you manage and overcome them?

I think content creation is the most physically and mentally draining job out there.
It's rewarding yes with the instant gratification of having your content grow in momentum and audience, but it's a lot of work and effort behind the scenes. From my previous experiences I knew about the ins and outs of video production, but what I didn't know was how to go about working with brands, news agencies, team management, hiring, and other stuff beyond the creation aspect of what comes with being a content creator. I follow the octopus system of having and getting people who do things better than me in tasks that are not my core competencies and that is how I tackle the challenges that have come my way.
 
Do you take responsibility for the kind of content you share on social media to ensure it doesn't influence your audience in the wrong way?

I definitely do. We have a very stringent process in place where every single line in our script has at least 3 supporting resources to credit it. In case we go wrong with our research, we ensure that we mention it in the captions and comments and pin it. Since we are in the education space, verified facts are essential to ensure that there isn't any misinformation being spread.

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A post shared by Kavya Karnatac (@kk.create)

Is there any influencer who you consider a strong competitor or individual you admire in your industry?

I don't consider anyone my competitor because no one is talking about geography the way I am. Especially no woman is and I am also young, vibrant, and a very good editor which also adds us. But I have a lot of people who I admire, I like this creator who goes by the name @Monkeyxmagic and @ontheground.with.sai. I also like this creator from Pakistan called Irfan Junejo who covered this series on Ramadan. There are a lot of people I like from the mainstream to the smallest creators and gain inspiration from them.
 
How do you handle the success and attention that comes with your viral videos? How does it impact your approach to content creation?

I work from my home and most of my days go in that small corner of my room. But whenever I go out which I rarely do, it really feels nice when people reach out and say that they have seen my videos. I recently went on a Trek and there were people from multiple states and there were people who had seen my videos. All of this just motivates me more to create more inclusive and diverse content.

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A post shared by Kavya Karnatac (@kk.create)

 
How do you engage and interact with your audience? Can you share some strategies or approaches that have helped you build a strong connection with your followers?

I love engaging and interacting with my audience. A few ways we do it, every day we put a quiz story of some geographical trivia, and we spend at least an hour before and after a reel is published. We try to reply to at least 100 DMs a day. And I genuinely believe that my audience contributes a lot to my content ideation and creation process.
 
How do you handle criticism and negative feedback from your audience? Do you have any strategies for maintaining a positive mindset in the face of only scrutiny?

Criticism can be in 2 ways. Genuine constructive criticism based on content, say for example if we get a fact wrong and one of our followers points it out, we do our research and correct ourselves either by re-uploading the content piece with the correct facts or by mentioning it in the caption with a disclaimer. However, there is non-constructive criticism we get a lot like your hair is not looking good, etc.  I do believe having a strong mindset is of the essence as a content creator. And it's not easy. In order to maintain a healthy relationship with content creation and social media, I do take time off at times when I am trying to bring more perspective back into my life with meditation and journaling and more clear sight on why I do what I do.

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A post shared by Kavya Karnatac (@kk.create)

 
What advice would you give to someone who wants to be a content creator?

My first and foremost advice would be to figure out what kind of content you want to create and work with a creator who is working in that field. I learned so much in my previous job, those 2 years were packed with extensive learning.
Second, figure out your voice. What is something that you are really passionate about and that drives you to put in a lot of effort?
Thirdly, identify one thing you want to keep improving in your content and keep ensuring that you improve it to a level of your satisfaction. Laser focus on things one thing at a time to excel.
Fourth, Experiment. I started with the green screen and then I started exploring other locations and ways to build and share content. Listen to your audience and keep experimenting.
Fifth, take care of your body. Content creation is a long-term game. A content creator needs to have the mentality of an athlete, so you need to have a schedule and take care of your body both mentally and physically to keep yourself ready for the long-term game of content creation.

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