The creator, founder, and operator of JorrParivar, Digital Pratik, aka Pratiksinh Chudasma, speaks to CXOToday about his journey from being an influence to leading the country’s first-ever NFT community. His opinions on how the metaverse will be the new-edge tool for assessing the commercial economy are also highlighted in the interview.
- How was your journey as an influencer and now the founder of JorrParivar?
I think I have always been an ‘influencee’ and not just an influencer. However, being an influencer has been a rich journey for me. It has taught me to be more patient and compassionate to others while working towards accomplishing our goals. No matter whether I was a call center employee, an influencer, and now the founder of JorrParivar – consistency, being realistic about situations, dream fulfillment, and authenticity in everything I put my heart to have always been the cornerstones of my journey. In fact, in whatever endeavors I undertake, my aim is always to live as the best version of myself and lead a JorrDaar life!
- Would you please elaborate on the objective of JorrParrivar and the community at large? Would you highlight some of your ground-breaking work?
To begin with, it all started when Digital Pratik bought his 1st huge NFT called MACRO MICRO Veefriends on May 12th, 2021, for 1.55 ETH when the Ethereum price was $3811.29 / ETH
I was deeply inspired by Veefriends, which is a project by Garyvee featuring around 250 characters drawn by him. And since that day, in a bid to create a project like Veefriends in India, I began researching and studying Defi, the NFT space, and developing ‘smart contracts’ in-depth. After experiencing numerous setbacks and roadblocks, our team finally executed the project with 22 IPs!
These 22 characters have been crafted to revolve around the ethics and principles I have lived by all my life. These are all about utility and access – the three types of tokens have different levels of access and activities. Through these tokens, I serve my Parivar via exclusive training, workshops, monthly Zoom calls, Q & A, dinner meetings, and much more. Essentially, they are a key to unlocking the phygital realm of Digital Pratik.
Recently, we also held the ‘JorrDaar Event,’ which was also India’s first-ever NFT-ticketed IRL event. Influencers like Raj Shamani, Suhani Shah, Vishaka Singh, Varun Mayya, Shashank Uduppa, and over 300 people all came under one roof for several activities, Q&A sessions, and panel discussions about NFTs and Web3.
3. Metaverse has captured the business economy. How will a content creator use the new-age tool for better storytelling?
I think Metaverse is not that sort of a consumer product yet. What I mean is that I am still not comfortable spending more than an hour in the Oculus virtual world and that too, maybe once a month. When we created a JorrPark using a Virtual World tool, our hodlers only enjoyed it just for a single day, and now, they no longer recall it. My response would be different a few years later – in perhaps 2027.
Currently, for more effective storytelling, it is crucial to develop your brand’s intellectual property, register it with the Indian government as we did with our 22 JorrParivar IPs, and then use Web2 (social media) in combination with Web3 (NFTs).
However, this is only a single person’s perspective, and even this can vary from project to project, vision to vision, and roadmap to roadmap.
4. A recent report on Accenture states that only a few enterprises are using AI which is gaining the edge. What is your view on the same?
No comments, as I haven’t experimented much with AI for my businesses yet. I believe in sharing views only when I learn and practically apply concepts to my business or my client’s business.
5. With many new-age tools there might be a chance to face cybersecurity challenges on a contrary aspect that needs to be considered. What is your view on the topic?
From WiFi and Bluetooth hacking to online privacy and social media phishing – concerns about computer security and security in cyberspace have always been a constant with the evolution of new tech.
Meanwhile, Web3 is still developing and is in its early acceptance stage. This is why I believe we will probably face cybersecurity issues in the Web3 space when it comes to moving consumer-centered products. Fact is, as tech evolves, cybersecurity concerns will always arise, and we must be on our toes and take precautions against them.
6. As per the market analysis, what is the next big thing in the space of Fintech
I firmly believe Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are the next big thing in the FinTech space. These NFTs are more than just images on the blockchain. They represent digital ownership because they provide proof and assurance of immutable ownership records on a decentralised blockchain ledger, ensuring that central owners cannot take them from you or tamper with their history.
People would be able to swap their NFTs for actual cash and use lending/staking Defi sites. If unable to repay the loan, the NFT will automatically be transferred to the lender, who may be a well-known Fintech company. Additionally, thanks to smart contracts, everything will be transparent on the blockchain without any middlemen.
However, blockchain technology presents an intriguing solution to address two issues with conventional loans and has the potential to alter lending practices. First, it is challenging for crypto asset owners to get traditional loans as banks and other financial institutions have difficulty assessing the worth of digital currencies. Second, in exchange for giving customers instant access to cash without requiring them to sell their cryptocurrency first, lenders demand far higher interest rates than those that might be found through online personal loan platforms.
- Any industry trend you have been noticing which will revolutionize the whole business economy in a couple of years?
The next significant development in the sector will be consumer blockchain. Consumer blockchain has the power to alter how marketers gather and use data, as well as how they interact with customers utilising NFTs.
The usage of NFTs in loyalty programs is one of its most immediate applications. And this can be enhanced in a variety of ways for NFTs holders and brands. For instance, a brand can set a smart contract inside NFTs where it can get a 10% royalty of every secondary sale of those NFTs. Moreover, these loyalty programs are not limited to brands – digital marketing, instructor, real estate brokers, and digital artists, amongst others, can also benefit from it.
Because NFTs are just another method of branding and internet marketing.
