It is marvellous how the internet, in particular, social media apps like TikTok pluck people out of obscurity and catapult them to international fame. The story of Isak Munda is one such amazing and delightful story. Before the government banned TikTok, numerous Indians like Chicken Leg Piece guy had become famous and found sources of income. This is also why Kili Paul and his sister Neema have become so famous in India – take a look:
It is quite likely that you received one or more videos of this young guy, perhaps along with his sister Neema via WhatsApp. This young Tanzanian seems to have found his niche lip-synching to Indian songs, lines from Hindi movies and more. Kili Paul (named for Mt Kilimanjaro) and his sister Neema are from the Maasai community of East Africa. They can be seen dancing or emoting in various videos, many of which have gone viral in India.
Remember the Jugnu dance challenge that had gone viral on Indian social media recently? Kili is quick to spot a trend! This long-limbed young man and his sister seem to have a natural grace and they really seem to enjoy what they're doing.
Top publications have been doing stories on the Paul duo – for many reasons. Indians are fascinated by this very good looking young pair that seem clearly to from a, indigenous African community, with their exotic-looking (for us) hair and clothing.
They are popular for several reasons: They work hard at the lip-synch, picking popular Indian numbers and trends, and because let’s face it – they're both exceedingly photogenic.
The Indian film industry has always been one of our biggest exports – Raj Kapoor was famous in USSR and Rajini has been a sensation in Japan; SRK is beloved all over the world. The internet and apps such as TikTok have made it possible for Indian pop culture to reach where it couldn’t before – including into the heart of Africa.
He has clearly been studying Indian actors closely – the expressions, the emoting, the gestures, he has it all down pretty well.
Here Kili demonstrates the loose-limbed grace that we associate with so many African athletes – and he just really seems to enjoy it hugely!
This guy speaks beautiful English and explains his story – how a person who speaks not a word of Hindi does his videos seemingly so effortlessly.
Since Indians don’t have access to TikTok, Kili Paul and Neema can be found on Instagram with their dance and lip-synch videos in Hindi and other languages. The latest is a short one where he lip-synchs to someone lamenting in Hindi about being broke.
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