TikTok was the first app that introduced short videos. The application offers a range of filters, video editing tools, effects, a wide range of music libraries, and more. Unfortunately, TikTok is no longer available in India due to national security issues. Though people in India may have forgotten the name of TikTok, the short video trend never took a downturn.
TikTok was banned in India on June 29, 2020. In a short span of time, the application managed to grab a big chunk of users in India. After it got banned in the country, creators and viewers started looking for alternatives, but at that time, there were only a few options with not-so-great features and user interface. We now have a big list of TikTok alternatives with a range of filters, effects, music libraries, and features.
Right here on Quyasoft you are privy to a litany of relevant information on Top 6 TikTok Indian alternatives for Android, iOS, How to Build a TikTok like App in India — Fast, 5 Best TikTok Alternatives in India and so much more. Take out time to surf through our catalog for more information on related topics. You don’t want to miss this!
Here are our top picks for TikTok alternatives:
How to Build a TikTok like App in India — Fast?
Ban of 59 Chinese apps has really accelerated the movement of Short Video Apps Market in India. Many new companies are emerging & many existing video-first companies are moving to TikTok like model to fill the void created by the ban on TikTok.
There are a few things where TikTok excelled:
– Easy Video Creation
– Recommendation Engine
– Watermark
– Leveraging Already Created Behaviours
I’ve seen a lot of companies showing their hourly downloads chart or active users chart, that’s not the reason why TikTok works! I mean ShareChat has 4.5M Daily Active Users (Feb 2020) but they have been losing it to TikTok/Helo for a very long time.
Easy Video Creation
TikTok is a really easy video-edit tool ever created yet it has limits. Many of the creators use apps like Viva Video/Kine Master to do some complex editing. Also, what I loved about TikTok is it constantly shows ‘How to create good TikTok videos’ inside TikTok itself. Flooding user feeds with ‘How to’ videos aren’t that difficult route. It will obviously boost new & emerging people to become ‘New Creators’.
One of the main features of TikTok is ‘Use this sound’. Now building this from scratch is difficult but the workaround is allowing people to download sound just like they download the video. Creators can use the sound & make their own videos using other editing apps.
Recommendation Engine
TikTok has the world’s best recommendation engine is what most people say. I’m not an expert but I know this is what keeps people use TikTok for hours. From what I’ve heard there are ways, this can be done easily in Tech— i) Bucketing of creators who post similar content ii) Bucketing of hashtags which are used to create similar videos.
The current approach that most apps are taking making the user select a language & showing content only in that language. By doing this only, you’re limiting users to watch vast % of content that exists on your platform.
Watermark
In case you don’t know, TikTok creators are still creating videos on the app & putting it up on Instagram & YouTube (Yes, you too can create if you have not uninstalled the app.) Watermark is a kind of signature of a creator & drives people to the TikTok app to search & follow them.
ShareChat too has a Watermark for a long time but there’s a difference of creators. I’d not like to go & follow someone who makes good WhatsApp status daily but I’d sure like to go & follow people who are coming to the camera, creating good content.
Leveraging Already Created Behaviours
TikTok has set precedent to drive Users to:
– Come in front of the Camera & Shoot Themselves
– Use Ring, Curtains, Tripod & Effects to make their videos look better
– Shoot multiple videos a day
People know this but they need a good platform. They need a promising platform where they can build their audience. There’s literally 0 effort required for Indian apps to spend on training creators. Leveraging creators can be done by— giving them a blue tick, making them ambassadors to invite others, etc.
I remember a chat with a friend — Sandeep, a month back where he said “TikTok has Content-driven Community where most other Platforms (Instagram, YouTube) has Community-driven Content. Achieving virality in TikTok is far easier, it doesn’t matter if you’ve 100,100k,1M followers. If you make a good video, it’ll get millions of views. Similarly, on Instagram, it stops at 2nd or 3rd-degree followers of any account unless you’re a celebrity. In TikTok, anyone can become famous, easily.”
All the apps that I’ve seen coming out from recent movements, have TikTok like UI: 100% screen is a video with 3–4 buttons. I’m also sure many of these apps will fight to get famous TikTok creators onboard by spending money. But the race will begin at a point when some of these apps start having good creator profiles, good camera features, good recommendation engines, etc.
TikTok spends $10M+/month on Google Ads in India & they will spend 10x of that if needed. Current Growth of Indian Apps is coming from hate to Chinese products, I won’t be surprised if some of these apps get 50–60M users in the next few months. Growing beyond this wave is tricky. In Q1 of 2019, 13% of all ads seen by users of Facebook’s Android app were for TikTok, now this sounds crazy but it shows it is not impossible. If you have an appealing entertainment product with heavy pockets, people will come to your platform.
This ban has given a very short window to Indian founders to build something local & put them on their toes to build something that sticks around. I’m hopeful this movement will see the rise of some TikTok creators moving completely out of it to Indian apps & we will see a real competitor of TikTok from India. This might be the only time in the history of Video-first social apps, to show that India too can build a competitive world-class app.
5 Best TikTok Alternatives in India
1. Instagram Reels
Instagram already had a massive number of users, with a good portion of them residing in India. So, all it had to do was contact developers and create a similar kind of feature on the application, which is what Instagram did. Instagram Reels is our first choice for creating or watching short videos due to its simple UI, various filters, effects, and music libraries. It has become a primary platform for most short video creators.
2. YouTube Shorts
YouTube Shorts needs no introduction. After TikTok got banned in India, YouTube Shorts released a beta version in India in September 2020 and was released globally in July 2021. YouTube Shorts has become popular over time and generates a crazy number of views. To create a short video on YouTube, click on the + button, select Create a Short option, and start your short video journey.
3. Josh
With over 10 crore downloads on Google Play Store alone, Josh is one of India’s most famous short video sharing platforms. You get a familiar user interface with access to an extensive music library. Needless to say, you get dozens of filters, effects, and video editing tools to create eye-catching videos.
4. Moj
Following the ban on TikTok in India, many similar apps saw a huge spike in the number of downloads, and one of them was Moj. As of now, the application has over 10 crore downloads on the Google Play Store. It is easy to use and has a familiar interface. So, you don’t have to worry about switching to an app like Moj.
5. MX TakaTak
MX TakaTak is another popular word in the short video industry. It’s a ShareChat-owned video-sharing platform. It also arrived with a motive to capture the short video market. As of now, the application has over 10 crore downloads on the Google Play Store. Again, you’ll get dozens of filters, effects, and editing tools to improve the video.
Top 6 TikTok Indian alternatives for Android, iOS
Chingari
Chingari is one of the TikTok alternatives that shot to popularity within a short period and currently has more than 10 million downloads on the Google Play Store. The app has two Bengaluru-based programmers — Mr Biswatma Nayak and Mr Siddharth Gautam. The app has a pretty simple UI that has majorly two sections: Videos and News. The former lets you view short videos by others and the latter keeps you updated with the world.
Image Source : INDIA TV/VANSHIKA MALHOTRA
Chingari app
To start with the app, you need to select the preferred language, register, and you are good to go. There is a video icon in the bottom part of the screen, tapping on which will let you make the videos. There are filters, video speed, song choices, and timer to start making videos. You get to choose from a plethora of songs to make the videos. There is also a Game Zone in the three-dotted menu for you to play games, which adds on to the versatility of the app.
Pros: News, gaming section
Cons: Dark theme
Availability: Android, iOS
Mitron
This is another app that came as one of the first TikTok alternatives when the app began getting trapped in the cobwebs of controversies. Although Mitron isn’t entirely Indian, the reason it is in the list is that it now owned by IIT student Shivank Agarwal. The app has mainly three sections: Videos, the section to create your short videos, and your profile on the Mitron app. When you open the app, you get to see videos from others in a scrolling format and by swiping right on any of the videos, you can see the profile of that person and even decide to follow him or her.
Image Source : INDIA TV/VANSHIKA MALHOTRA
Trell app
Before starting, you need to log in with a Google account. The videos can be made with ease and you can add filters, sounds, and even a timer to the created video. All you need to do is hit the shutter button available in the middle. However, the song choices aren’t a lot as compared to other apps.
Pros: Easy-to-use app
Cons: Not many song choices
Availability: Android, iOS
Roposo
The Roposo app isn’t a new one but gained popularity when TikTok was facing trouble in India prior to its ban. The app follows the same way of making, watching, and sharing short videos on various topics. It requires you to select your preferred language, enter mobile number and OTP, and sign-up to start using the app. It has a different UI with video categories at the bottom part, the various types of channels you can follow in the middle part, and your profile and settings at the top part.
Image Source : INDIA TV/VANSHIKA MALHOTRA
Roposo app
The app doesn’t have a camera icon in the middle of the homepage to start making videos; you need to select any particular video to get the camera icon in the bottom left side. You can add effects, filters, and sounds to the videos. You can also adjust the speed of the video, add beauty filters, and adjust the brightness as per your need. It also supports gestures and trending topics with hashtags. One interesting thing is that you can make a remix of an existing video by tapping on the Mix option in a particular video, much like TikTok.
Pros: Various video options
Cons: Just about videos
Availability: Android, iOS
Moj by ShareChat
ShareChat is an Indian social media app that recently introduced the Moj app for short videos as a rival to TikTok. The app is much like any other TikTok rival has the option to add filters, effects, timer, music to the short videos. You can also adjust the speed and add beauty filter to the videos.
Image Source : INDIA TV/VANSHIKA MALHOTRA
Moj app
The app has a UI similar to that of Instagram with five sections: Home, Explore, the option to add videos, Notifications, and Profile section. While you can view others’ videos without logging in, you need to log in to create your own. The app is easy-to-use and doesn’t confuse you. It has an Instagram-like UI, however, ensures ease of usage, from exploring videos to making your own.
Pros: Easy to use
Cons: Instagram copy
Availability: Android, iOS
Instagram Reels
Instagram Reels is not a standalone app for short videos but an effort to compete with TikTok and more such apps out there. In addition to sharing Stories on Instagram, you can now share short videos or Reels. All you need to do is head to the camera icon from where you add Instagram Stories, select the Reels option, make videos, add the various video settings and you are good to go.
Image Source : INDIA TV/VANSHIKA MALHOTRA
Instagram Reels
Much like IGTV, Instagram Reels will show up in a dedicated section for the same. The feature has various options such as filters, speed controls, stickers, text, music, and more. The most convenient part is that it can be made via the Instagram app, which is one of the popular social media platforms right now.
Pros: No need for a dedicated app
Cons: Lesser video options
Availability: Android, iOS
Trell
Trell is another app for users to make short videos and get the fame they need now that TikTok isn’t here. The app is a lifestyle app and allows you to make videos and follow others to view theirs. When the app is opened, you will be required to select your preferred language and you are good to go. It is categorised into various video types for you to view the ones you like. To get notifications, you need to log in. To make videos, you need to tap on the ‘+’ option select the Blog or Vlog option.
Image Source : INDIA TV/VANSHIKA MALHOTRA
Mitron app
There are two interesting aspects of the app; there is a Trell Shop section for you to shop stuff and you can also write blogs instead of just making short videos. Although, the video editing options aren’t much. You also earn coins and enter various competitions via the app to earn money.
Pros: The ability to shop and write
Cons: Lesser video editing options
Availability: Android, iOS
Other TikTok alternatives you can consider for Android, iOS
As a reminder, there are a number of TikTok alternatives that are currently available in India and I only mentioned the popular ones. The other options include Bolo Indya, Rizzle, Sim-Sim, Mx Taka Tak, Zee5’s HiPi, Josh, and even the popular Dubsmash app. You can consider any of the apps that suit your usage.