Short Video App Kwai Pushes for Laughter Therapy During Lockdown

The nationwide lockdown in response to the Coronavirus pandemic has restrained people to their houses and most of these people are feeling anxiety and restlessness as a result. To lift up their spirits and to give them an outlet for their creativity, popular short video-sharing app Kwai ran a viral challenge campaign #HasteHasaate.

Kwai - #HasteHasaate Ranking

Kwai’s #HasteHasaate challenge ran for a period of two weeks starting in mid of May. The challenge received more than 51,000 entries from users across India and became a viral sensation on the app. To participate in the challenge and win prizes, users had to post their best comedy videos along with the hashtag in the video caption on the Kwai app. Twenty users with the maximum number of likes were given cash prizes by Kwai.

Lucknow-based Ms. Annu Verma, 29, won the #HasteHasaate challenge in first position, receiving well over 1.5 lakh likes for her entry. Annu is a housewife and has been actively posting videos on the Kwai app for nearly two years now. “I will use the money that I have won from this challenge for charity. I have always wanted to do charity but had limited income and now that I have a chance, I will definitely use this money to help the needy,” says Annu.

Delhi-based Abhay Verma and Radhika Chauhan were named as second and third winners of the challenge by Kwai. All three challenge winners received a prize money of INR 3,000 each.

25-years old Abhay Verma, the first runner up, was encouraged by his family member to participate in the challenge. “I gained many new fans and Kwai friends by participating in the #HasteHasaate challenge and now winning the second prize is an icing on the cake. I am going to use the prize money to buy a new camera and make better videos because Kwai is going to be a big part of my life from now on,” says Abhay.  

The second runner up, 29-year old Radhika Chauhan is a housewife from East Delhi and is a regular Kwai user. “Kwai helped me build an identity for myself and now many people around me recognise me from the app,” says Radhika. “I dedicate this prize to my followers and look forward to entertaining them through my videos,” she proudly says.

Available for free on Android and iOS, Kwai is a popular video-sharing app that lets people share and watch fun videos directly from their smartphones. A lot of Kwai’s content is based on memes, music and challenges which allow users to engage with other people.