By Mahika Panditha    TikTok has taken the world by a storm, and so have the creators on it. Earlier this week, we had the chance to talk to one of Sri Lanka’s most popular creators – Vishver Swaminathan (@vishiii98). He has a following of over 19,000 people and is making people laugh every single day. Aside from this, Vishver is a Social Media Manager and Content Creator at “The Serendipity Collection” – a portfolio of various private villas that are designed by famous architects. He has made several videos on a range of topics, including from Kandos Chocolate to respecting women. If you have not seen his videos, I highly recommend you go and check them out. If you are ever in need of a laugh or even a smile, this is where you need to go. You can find him on Instagram too! Before I give away too much, I will let you all read what Vishver had to say to Happinez last week.   So what got you into posting videos on TikTok?    I was used to seeing TikTok content uploaded by Australians up until I forgot my account login credentials and had to create a new account, and since that new account was made in Sri Lanka, the TikTok algorithm started showing me only Sri Lankan content, and while most content creators have their own unique style and are fun to watch, the majority of the content is either cringe, boring, depressing, extremely generic, or self-obsessed, so I just thought I'll try my hand at it. But I was just going to be myself and hopefully impact whoever watching positively.   What inspires your content?    So I have three boxes that need to be ticked when it comes to my content:

1. It has to make me laugh (most important)
2. It cannot be offensive to anyone
3. It has to be authentic and needs to present my unique personality 100%

  Then again, honestly speaking, it all depends on my mood. If you go through my profile, you’ll see there’s no particular style or pattern present when it comes to my content; it’s just off the top of my head. I think of something funny and I hit record and post. I don't even use hashtags now because I can’t be bothered (if I did, my videos would reach more people though, but I'm not doing it for clout. Also it’s probably because I love my current followers; there are a few followers I always see in the comments section and I engage with them quite a bit).   What drives you to keep creating content?   The lovely comments and much-appreciated feedback from my viewers is what drives my content 100% because it lets me know that I’m positively impacting a small portion of individuals by putting a smile on their faces during a bad day they may be having.   Is sharing on TikTok/Instagram something you see yourself doing in the long run?    That's such a typical “where do you see yourself in the next X amount of years” question. “I don't know,” would have to be my answer to that question. I mean, TikTok has suddenly made itself a significant influencer in my life; I would even go the extra distance to say that it can sometimes be a burden because it consumes a large amount of my time, just because I find myself losing track of time when I am scrolling through videos. The platform’s highly adaptive and intuitive user interface gets you to mindlessly keep scrolling through. I like to take things as they come; I’m not someone to think too far ahead, so for now I'm just going to continue to enjoy TikTok and Instagram and take life one step at time.   How do you feel about/deal with the increasing popularity you are gaining via social media?    What popularity? Haha! I love it, but at the same time I don't let it get to my head. I’m still the same guy I was before this popularity wave hit me and I’ll still be the same guy after the hype is dead and gone. But up until then, I’m just gonna go with the flow and ride the wave.   What is your opinion on social media in Sri Lanka?   Everyone’s entitled to post what they want on their social media platforms and I feel that as long as they are happy posting what they post and they don't offend anybody, who are we to judge? If you don't like what someone is posting, unfollow them. I have a saying I tell myself: “You do you, I'll do me, and let everybody else do whatever they want, as long as they’re happy and don't offend anybody.”   If you could share one message with your followers, what would it be?    Be mindful of the people you let into your closest circle of friends. If you let the wrong people in, remember that it’s the people closest to you that can hurt you the most because you let your guard down and make yourself vulnerable to them.   Any advice for people who are looking to become content creators?    Well I'm not a pro to give anyone advice, but the principles I follow, as I mentioned earlier, are:

• Don’t do it to get attention
• Do what genuinely makes you happy and unique
• Don’t measure and compare yourself to others on the platform
• Don’t get demotivated when you don’t see engagement going up
• Don’t offend anybody with your content

  PHOTO © KANCHANA SWAMINATHAN