Born in Bhokarhedi village in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, a young Shanta Verma could have never imagined the path her life would take. A social media influencers at the age of 76, Shanta is slaying every trend she sets her eyes on and proving that age is just a number.
“I got married at the age of 15. From the very beginning, I was involved in household work. Looking after my siblings, then in-laws, my children and family,” Verma, whose birthday outfits video recently went viral on social media, told the indianexpress.com.
Her entry on Instagram also happened via her husband. Shanta Verma’s Instagram account ‘Mr._and_mrs._verma’, which has a following of over 16,000 on the platforms, was initially named ‘Gangsta Grandpa’ to upload the humorous content of her husband Yashpal.
“I made this page for my grandfather because he used to do a lot of funny things. My cousins and I thought that it would be a great idea to put all of that online. However, as we started shooting his dance videos, dadi would come and say that she can do it better. That’s when we changed the name,” Verma’s granddaughter Jonita, who jointly handles the account told the indianexpress.com.
Though the videos on the Instagram page includes pranks, popular social media trends and transition clips among other things, Verma is particularly fond of the fashion content. “She just loves dressing up and enjoys trying out various outfits during the shoot,” the 22-year-old adds.
Shanta began experimenting with the fashion challenges last year and liked what she did. She always stitched clothes for children in her home but she really appreciates the wide variety of choices available today. “Earlier, one did not have so many options in clothes. We wore basic sarees and suits. Now, there is a lot of variety and after last year’s video, I developed more interest and wanted to try out the latest fashion trends,” Verma said.
While the septuagenarian has gained quite some popularity on social media in the past couple of weeks, it is her granddaughter who selects the content that needs to be re-enacted or shot. However, Verma takes the final call. “Everything I upload online is first approved by them (the couple). However, dadi loves getting ready and striking a pose for the camera,” she tells the indianexpress.com.
Enjoying all the attention she is getting right now, Shanta has not planned ahead and plans to continue posing for the camera as long as her body allows. “Whenever I shoot a video, she is always very curious to see how the final clip has come out to be and wants me to send it across to her daughter and relatives to get their reaction,” Jonita adds.
Sharing how her videos have seldom received any negative response, Shanta recalls a relative calling her and telling that “Mausi aap toh cha gaye. Aap toh news mai aagae (You have made it. You are all over the news).”