Penniless in a tiny room during Covid, they invited the world inside through YouTube: How 2 sisters from Bengal transformed their family’s fortunes in Pune

“It was not even a proper room,” recalls Reenu. “It was a tiny space with plywood partitions. There was no door, no privacy, just a curtain and just the four of us living together, trying to adjust somehow.”

Income stopped for family

Rachana remembers how everything changed overnight and the following months tested their resilience. “Our mother used to weave sarees back home. That stopped. Dad’s dhaba was closed, and suddenly there was no income.”

As the lockdown dragged on, the family decided to stay back in Pune because going home meant the same uncertainty, but at least here, they were together. With all the income sources stopped, the Debnaths had little to survive on.

“Dad was the only one earning, but there were no people to restart the dhaba and no money to pay the workers anyway,” says Rachana.

“So we all decided to help our dhaba. I made chapatis, Reenu washed dishes. We did it because it was the only way to stay together and keep things running.”

The two sisters began filming short sketches, using just a smartphone and a plain wall as their background. (Express Photo)

The days blended into each other inside that tiny, hot room. Reenu’s creative spark refused to fade. “I always loved acting- I was never very good at studies,” she says.

“In school, I used to mimic my teachers and make everyone laugh- performing made me happy.”

The two sisters began filming short sketches, using just a smartphone and a plain wall as their background.

“We made our first TikTok videos just for fun, then we started a YouTube channel, dancing, lip-syncing, making food videos and whatnot,” Rachana recalls. What started as a distraction soon became their passion. “Our channel got one lakh subscribers in eight months, but then I had to delete it because of copyright issues,” added Reenu.

Shooting before dhaba gets noisy

That disappointment did not stop her. In 2023, Reenu began posting short, relatable, humorous acting videos using her own voice as a part of her authenticity, but filming in the dhaba’s staff room was not easy. She would wait for the dhaba to go quiet before recording her dialogues.

“Dad used to shout from the kitchen, ‘Reenu’s shooting again’,” she laughs. “I used to shoot before 6 pm,” Reenu added. “After that, customers would come in, and the place would get noisy.

Behind this laughter were nights of worry. The family had taken loans to survive the lockdown- from banks, finance apps, even credit cards. “There were times we couldn’t pay rent,” Rachana told The Indian Express.

By 2024, Reenu’s acting videos began going viral. Within a year, she gained over two million followers across YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. “It felt unreal,” she says.

“The same room where we once struggled to sleep became the place where our life re-shaped itself.”

Giving back to parents

Now, the Debnath family lives in a better house. They travel by flight when they visit home, something they never imagined doing. Their parents’ dhaba has also grown, supported by Reenu’s online popularity. “Strangers often visit our dhaba just to meet Reenu Debnath from Instagram”, Rachana laughs.

When asked what kept them going, both sisters gave the same answer: their parents. “We saw them struggle every single day,” says Reenu.

“That’s what pushed us. I didn’t want to give up because they never did.” As Reenu says, “We came to Pune as tourists. But this city made us who we are.”

Aryesh Chakraborty is an intern with The Indian Express.