From a freshly out of school, young engineering student to becoming a huge media sensation, YouTube star Ranveer Allahbadia aka BeerBiceps' journey has been inspirational to say the least! He rose to fame for creating positive content that originally dealt with documenting his fitness journey on his YouTube channel back in 2015. Now, his videos not only surround fitness, but also venture into varied topics like entrepreneurship, men’s fashion, grooming and most importantly, sensitive topics like mental health.
Today, Ranveer has three YouTube channels - BeerBiceps, Ranveer Allahbadia and The Ranveer Show Clips. The Ranveer Show, which is currently no. 1 on Spotify, is India’s first long-format podcast with an aim to dig deep into the mindset of successful and path-breaking individuals. Ranveer has collaborated with international icon Arnold Schwarzenegger, actors Priyanka Chopra, Saif Ali Khan, Ayushmann Khurana, Ritesh Agarwal of Oyo Rooms and many more.
In an exclusive interview with The Free Press Journal, Ranveer Allahbadia spoke about his biggest inspiration, mental health, the importance of taking risks and more.
Here are the excerpts from the interview:
Tell us something about your username BeerBiceps. Where did the idea come from?
Initially, the concept was to only run a fitness channel where we promoted the Healthy Fitness idea, not becoming obsessed with fitness, but enjoying your fitness journey and at the same time having fun. That's why BeerBiceps was planned and overtime was just the name that stuck around as it was catchy.
What are the three things that have kept you going?
Consistency, my physical fitness regimen and just loving my work would be three qualities that kept me going. It makes me feel like the child inside me is always alive. I really love creating content for a living.
You moved from engineering to digital content creation, what advice would you give to millennials who are too scared to take risks?
The advice I’d like to give is that don’t let anything make you feel like something isn’t achievable. Anything in the world can be mastered if you put your heart and soul to it, you can even become a rocket scientist if you toil enough to get there! Real education starts when you get down and dirty in the practical world and people and experiences teach you a lot more. I took YouTube to my advantage and learnt a lot from there. So can you. And once you do learn, believe in yourself enough and take the plunge! Universe favours those who never give up!
As a follower of spiritual leader Sadhguru, how important do you think meditation is for millennials?
Meditation has changed my life for the better. I personally think it’s the most critical aspect of living given the amount of mental health problems our generation has to deal with. Meditation is one of the biggest and most effective tools to better your mental health, focus, determination, will power and what not! I have seen my lowest of the lows and meditation and spirituality has really helped me a lot. That’s how I got into Sadaguru, YSS (Yogoda Satsanga Society) and all of the heartfulness. A major habit of being mentally fit is to meditate regularly at least 20 mins a day.
You often speak about sensitive issues like mental health on your channel, what advice would you want to give to your fans who are going through a rough patch?
If you’re going through a hard time or any mental health problems, I would first urge you to speak to the ones who are close to you. There is no shame in sharing your feelings and I suggest you do that with your friends, family and loved ones. If you feel you need professional support, don’t stop yourself and just get it. Self care is really important and one should not underestimate it. Being mindful of what you consume online and offline is also imperative. Also try to live a healthy lifestyle by exercising, drinking enough water, meditation, getting enough sleep and doing what interests you - like dancing, playing a sport, painting, singing, writing etc. There is a lot more to life than we know and it all turns out in our favour eventually so smile and don’t worry!
Apart from YouTuber, motivational speaker and an aspiring author, what else can we expect from you in 2021? Do you have any plans of venturing into the showbiz?
Currently. I want to get deeper into the business world. It'll be a lot of business in the next 3 to 5 years, after which I'll go back to creativity and at some point in my life I'd love to direct shows or movies - but that point is surely a few years away. Right now, it’s about starting more YouTube channels, growing in the content world, creating products through the content-based community we've established, selling products to them and all in all, bringing in a lot more business which is my dream. But of course, if something cool comes along, like the video with Jasleen Royal then I’d be happy to do that too.
What is the best compliment you’ve ever received from a fan or a follower?
Once I was grabbed and kissed at a YouTube Fan Fest and that person told me 'I love you’ !!! While I did feel violated and I do understand the other person's plight, I do think it was a huge compliment.
While you’re an inspiration to many, who’s been your biggest inspiration?
Arnold Schwarzenegger. He has been a huge source of inspiration to my life. His career and life journey speaks for it. I too picture my own life to that effect because he has just been good in multiple careers, and that's how I also picture my own future.
What advice would you like to give to aspiring influencers?
Aspiring influencers should never shy away from experimenting as that’s where they’ll get to learn a lot. They should always try new things and then see the permutations and combinations that work for them. It’s all trial and error for most people in the beginning, so never lose hope. If you enjoy what you’re doing, you’ll enjoy experimenting too and you will definitely want to try all the new things that are constantly introduced in the digital content creator space. Chances are , that’s how you may end up finding your niche too. Just be absolutely consistent and there is no way you won’t hit the bulls eye when time cometh!
