Pandey needs that cash to replicate his online success in the chaotic world of Kota, the hub of India’s test-preparation market. When Pandey showed up in his brand-new classroom, screaming teenagers thronged the online celebrity — at least according to the promotional YouTube video, which has been seen 3 million times in three weeks. The Indian test-prep market has always been about turning anxiety into cash. Not all tutors are getting paid that much, but the business case is definitely shifting offline. Traditional tutoring has a faster path to profit, because its success is rooted in demographics and India’s post-socialist economic structure.
