On March 14, the Union Government announced a $1 billion fund to support digital content creation in India, labelling it a thriving hub for the content creator ecosystem. On April 24, Misha Agrawal, a 24-year-old lifestyle content creator, died by suicide; succumbing to a toxic byproduct of this ecosystem that was lurking behind those tall numbers. “My little baby sister had built her world around Instagram and her followers, with a single goal of reaching 1 million followers and gaining loving fans. When her followers started decreasing, she became distraught and felt worthless,” her sister said in an official statement after Misha’s death.

Misha Agrawal's phone wallpaper shows her goal of amassing one million followers. Pics courtesy/themishaagrawalshow on Instagram