Aayur Kaul, Maket Head, Skillshare India, has over 8 years of experience in varied layers of management, including P&L, strategy, growth, operations and sales. In his current role with Skillshare India, Aayur spearheads partner recruitment and management, develops and implements marketing strategies, oversees customer & teacher acquisition and supplements content support. Aayur comes from a strong entrepreneurial background with a passion to drive change in the dynamic ed-tech sector. Previously, he was the co-founder of WhatsYourChase, a creative pursuit based ed-tech startup where he successfully raised funds from Sequoia backed founders & CXOs, Deepinder Dhingra and Kuldeep Mamgain. During his three-year stint at WhatsYourChase, Aayur hyper-scaled the platform’s growth by expanding its user base to over 60K and establishing over 200 collaborators.
India’s ecosystem of learning transformed itself since the pandemic began. The country’s edtech sector grew rapidly to fill the vacuum created by closure of schools, colleges and office spaces and is now worth over $15 billion. BARC India and Nielsen found a 30% increase in the screen time spent on online learning applications on smartphones since the lockdown.
Reskilling accounts for the biggest segment today, worth over $93 million.
India is now the second largest edtech market and this growth is backed by the rise in the ‘paid user base’ for online learning. High-quality online classes, live classroom projects, and celebrity masterclasses from expert social media influencers are leading more people to pursue their creative interests. A significant percent of Indian learners are actively looking for classes that can enable them to monetize their creative journey, according to the Skillshare Trends Report 2022. More than half (55%) of those who learn Graphic Design also pick up Illustration classes, 30% of them learn Animation classes, and 26% consume lessons on Freelance & Entrepreneurship.
Heading into 2022, here are classes that can enable your creativity:
Fine Art – Learning art online is increasingly becoming popular in India. From oil painting, watercolour painting, printmaking, sculpting, clay modelling crafting and Chinese brush painting, creatives can learn new skills and how to monetize them. As over 350 million people in India plan on monetizing their own skills, online learning platforms, with a wide community base can help aspiring artists learn how to become full-time painters, sculptors, or even start a handcrafted business.
Illustration – From children’s storybooks to educational manuscripts, an illustrator’s skills are always in demand to bring stories, characters, and concepts alive. Illustration is one of the most widely-subscribed online classes in India. Online learning platforms with micro learning options are a great fit for illustrators as they can pick up on software skills, the art of illustration, and sometimes even productivity classes to learn how to hustle. Illustrators looking to upskill don’t have to scout for mentors to learn from when influencers in the field bring their expertise as teachers on online learning platforms.
Graphic Design – In the digital age, textual and visual content can make or break various digital campaigns. Graphic designers can find a variety of classes online that can help them design better websites, promotional materials, brochures, and also add stellar visual context to videos. There are several courses online that teach you how to master design tools like CorelDraw or the Adobe Creative Suite, Procreate and how to convert pen-and-paper designs to a digital format. These tools could help you crack into the graphic designing market by either working for different organizations or even starting your own business.
Film & Video – By the end of 2022, online videos are set to make up more than 82% of all consumer internet traffic. Video content is set to become the biggest toolkit in a marketer’s arsenal, which is why those conversant in film and video will find no shortage of options. Online courses can walk you through the basics of, help you pick the right camera, teach you how to use and adjust the ISO, focal length, shutter speeds, experiment with camera angles, and sound. There are also other technical courses available that could teach you video editing techniques and tools such as FinalCut Pro and Adobe Premiere Pro. Upon acquiring these skills, you can craft professional videos for marketers or shoot films that narrate unique storylines or champion various causes. There is also considerable scope for those looking to become independent filmmakers, especially with the increased popularity of indie content on OTT platforms.
Animation – Animators have a multitude of options with the soaring demand. Whether you want to create quirky ads, children’s movies, or develop exciting new video games like Age of Empires, DOTA, Red Dead Redemption and more. Animation can bring various concepts to life, while the styles of animation can convey the tone of the art. Styles that look life-like can blur the lines between reality and fiction while whimsical styles can portray innocence. Those with the curiosity towards the field can learn various animation tools such as Autodesk, Adobe Animate and many more.
2022 is set to be the year in which ‘career’ no longer simply refers to traditional 9-5 jobs. More and more people are pursuing their artistic inclinations to lucrative effect, and online courses are an effective and inexpensive way to pick up the skills you need and build a lifelong habit of staying curious. So if you have the zeal to upskill, learn continuously and monetise your passion, join one of the many top-rated online courses and learn from the experts today.