Having a world-recognized entrepreneur and influencers for a sibling has its share for benefits—and difficulties. Though the lives of famous people plaster the covers of news, blogs, websites, their less-famous siblings often remain in the shadows of near obscurity. In some families, this may cause even more centention than the typical sibling relationship.
But according to Athisha Khan, this was never the case. While her sister, Neelofa is currently in the thick of fame and success as a fashion icon, entrepreneur and social media influencer with a massive following in Asia and beyond, Athisha on the other hand is slowly building up her own name, commanding a substantial number of social media followers by her own YouTube channel.
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We reached out to the 7th child of 9 to ask her perception on what it’s like to grow up surrounded by fame siblings, how she navigated her teenage life in the eye of the public and how she successfully gained over 280k subscribers on YouTube.
You grew up in a big family (We’re talking 9 siblings in total). In your own point of view, what made it so memorable and fun?
There’s no escaping each other. We were all up each other’s business and we have endless stories to talk about now. So much was going on all the time! I love it. Every bit of it.
And which siblings do you think you most resemble?
In terms of looks, there’s definitely a mixture. If you ask one person they’ll say one of my older sisters and if you ask another they’ll say my younger sister. I honestly can’t pinpoint who I look most like. In terms of personality, I think I resemble three of my siblings the most (in three very different ways) – Kak Nabila, Aqief and Faliq.
I’m sure each one of your siblings has their own unique identity and personality. Which one of them gave out the most impactful advice? What are the values your siblings have taught you?
Don’t know if I’m able to pick one as easily as I thought I would. We’re all brought up the same so the pieces of advice are mostly originally from my parents. Just as simple as to always choose to be kind, do good and in return, you’ll get the best for yourself.
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Always choose to be kind, do good and in return, you’ll get the best for yourself
The Aquarius born lady is also a true definition of ‘beauty with brains’. Upon completing her studies at local University, Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar, she straight away flew off to the United Kingdom to continue her studies in Law with Business at the University of Birmingham. But with the current pandemic that’s been affecting the world, she had no choice but to return to Malaysia.
How important is eating meals together as a family to you? And what’s a typical family dinner for you?
Everyone has hectic schedules so for the most part, we eat when we can but it’s always made sure that no one is ever eating alone. It might not be dinner time but we always find some time in the day for everyone to sit together to just chat and enjoy each other’s company.
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With a career in entertainment behind her, Athisha never backs down in showing her avid support to her sisters’. She often posts about it on Instagram and on her Vlogs—giving out glimpses of an everyday-typical life of the big family. Her sisters would make an appearance every now and then but for Athisha, she never wanted to ride on anybody’s back for success. If anything, she wants people to recognize her as her true authentic-self, not her siblings, ‘’I want my videos to be products of me.’’
Previously, I never wanted to post about my sister, Neelofa, because I wanted people to follow me because of me
Have you ever felt overshadowed by your sisters?
The easy answer is I would be lying if I said never. I never want to ride on anybody’s back for success, ever. Previously, I never wanted to post about my sister, Neelofa, because I wanted people to follow me because of me. Things have changed a lot since then. I learned to be proud of my siblings instead of hiding them away from my vlogs. I call my vlogs my video diaries. How can I censor someone that plays such a huge role in my life, out of my life? It took time but I slowly got better. As of recently (past year or two), my answer would now be no, not anymore. We’re all working in our own spaces and in very different ways while supporting one another. I’m nothing but proud of my siblings and slowly but surely, I’m becoming proud of myself too!
All of you are different in your own ways, but what is one specific thing that separates you from your sisters? What’s your special talent?
Among my family, I can be considered a creative person. Hence, I’m on YouTube. My siblings always ask me just to look for an editor so I can put more content out there but I want my videos to be products of me. I want every colour adjustment, volume change, music added, titles, animation to be done by me. The creative process is my favourite part of “my job”. Still have a long way to go though!
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Your teenage years are supposed to be a time for self-discovery and self-experimentation. But have you ever thought that it is somewhat hard for you to spend your teenage life in the public eye? Everything that you say or do will somewhat become the subject of the public
I’m quite careful. Careful with my actions and especially my words. I’m learning to get over it a bit. I don’t ever want to come off hateful because I am in no way a person of that sort but I do want to express my opinions and thoughts more. I do think about what comments could be made about what I’ve said so I do restrict myself a little but it’s nothing serious. My viewers learn a little bit more about me through every video I upload and every post I make. I learn a little more about them from every DM they send and comment they make. We’ve turned into a community. I have done pretty much everything I want to do and I haven’t been judged by most of them – I’m aware and very grateful for this.
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Moving forward to her success of gaining over 280k subscribers on YouTube in a span of 3 years, Athisha said the best way to engage with your audience is to ask questions. ‘’Get your audience to share their knowledge and experiences. Get more people involved. Even if they don’t type out their answers and post a comment, your questions will get them thinking and will eventually get them to keep coming back,’’ said the 22-years-old beauty. ‘’Another tip I can think of is to do giveaways. The more you give, the more you get.’’
Do you plan your stories content in advance? And usually, how long was the process from planning the video to executing to editing?
For videos, I do have to plan and prep everything just to make the filming process smoother. How long it takes to prepare everything depends on the video. Some videos require no prior thought at all while others could take up to over an hour or two (could be more).
Last but not least, complete this statement: “My siblings are…”
My siblings are my best friends. I love them with all my heart!
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