Prajakta Koli: From YouTube Sketches to Global Influence
There aren’t many names that stand out as much as Prajakta Koli in the exciting world of making digital content. The 32-year-old from Mumbai, who is known to millions as “MostlySane,” has gone from being a radio intern to a YouTuber, actress, author, and advocate. Koli was born on June 27, 1993, in Thane, Maharashtra. Her story shows how strong, relatable, and creative she is. She is India’s first creator on the TIME100 Creators list, with more than 7.24 million YouTube subscribers and a string of successful projects. She embodies the Gen-Z spirit of storytelling that connects entertainment and social change.
Early Life: Born in Thane with a Dream of Being an Entertainer
Prajakta Koli grew up in Thane, a busy suburb of Mumbai, in a middle-class family. Her father, Manoj Koli, used to work in real estate and now owns a restaurant. Her mother, Archana, teaches phonetics and languages. Bollywood movies and radio waves filled Prajakta’s childhood with sounds. Her older brother, Nishant, was a big fan of these things and they sparked her love of performing. “I always wanted to make people laugh,” she said in an interview, remembering how imitating radio jockeys became her favorite thing to do.
Her schooling gave her a strong base for her career in the media. Koli went to Vasant Vihar High School in Thane, where she improved her debating and other skills outside of school. Later, she got a Bachelor of Mass Media from the V.G. Vaze College of Arts, Science, and Commerce in Mulund, which is part of Mumbai University. She started to have the dream of becoming a radio jockey (RJ) while she was in college. She got her start in the business by interning at Fever 104 FM in Mumbai, where she met stars like Hrithik Roshan. She even hosted a short-lived show called Call Center, but it made her lose faith. Koli later said, “Radio felt horrible.” A chance meeting with content creator Sudeep Lahiri changed everything. He told her to try YouTube, which was still new in India at the time.
How MostlySane Became a YouTube Star
Koli started her YouTube channel, MostlySane, in February 2015 with the simple goal of making funny videos that showed what life is like for most Indians. Her early videos, which were funny sketches about Delhi slang, awkward family dinners, and problems that millennials can relate to, hit home. “10 Hilarious Words Delhi People Use,” one of her breakout hits, got more than a million views and made her famous. Koli built a loyal following by posting on themed days, like Real Talk Tuesday for interviews, Comedy on Thursday, and Sawaal Saturday for Q&As. They liked her body-positive, unfiltered vibe.
Milestones came quickly. She played at YouTube FanFest in Delhi and Mumbai in 2018. In April 2019, Susan Wojcicki, then-CEO of YouTube, picked Koli’s channel for her first interview with an Indian creator. This started the Real Talk Tuesday series with famous people like Sadhguru, Adam Sandler, and Jennifer Aniston. She started Pretty Fit, a YouTube Originals fitness-comedy show with celebrity guests doing rustic challenges, in 2020. By 2025, MostlySane had become a place for vlogs, podcasts, and social commentary, and Koli made it onto Forbes India’s 30 Under 30 and GQ’s Most Influential Young Indians lists. What is her secret? “I talk about what I know—messy, real life,” she says.
Acting Breakthrough: Lights, Camera, and Praise
Koli’s move to acting was smooth, showing that her sense of timing for comedy worked just as well on screen. Khayali Pulao, a short film, was her first role in July 2020. That November, Netflix’s Mismatched came out, and she played the ambitious Dimple Ahuja in a romantic comedy about technology, love, and identity. The show is now in its third season (2024), and she got a lot of praise for accurately portraying the subtleties of Gen-Z.
Next came Bollywood. She played the free-spirited Ginny Saini in Jugjugg Jeeyo, a family comedy-drama with Varun Dhawan and Kiara Advani in 2022. This earned her a Filmfare nomination for Best Female Debut. Neeyat, a mystery thriller with Vidya Balan, and Yeh Shaadi Nahi Ho Sakti, a Zee Theatre teleplay, came out in 2023. She will be in the horror series Unseen for Prime Video and Andhera (2025), where she plays Rumi. Koli has also done voice work, like Ash Barton in Marvel’s Hindi Wastelanders podcast (2023) and cameos in Audible’s Desi Down Under. Critics call her a “cross-platform talent” who gives her roles depth and empathy.
Advocacy and Impact: More Than Just a Screen
Koli’s impact goes beyond entertainment; she’s a strong voice for change. She started the #iPledgeToBeMe campaign on World Mental Health Day 2016 to fight body shaming and promote mental health, based on her own experiences. Her 2017 rap song “Shameless” went viral, which helped spread the word. As a YouTube Creators for Change ambassador in 2018, she spoke at the UN on International Day of Tolerance. The program won a Daytime Emmy in 2021.
Her advocacy grew stronger through partnerships: in 2020, she interviewed girls about education with Michelle Obama; in 2022, she joined the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Goalkeepers Advisory Group; and in 2022, she became UNDP India’s first Youth Climate Champion. At the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2023, she spoke for young people. In 2024, NDTV named her the Climate Influencer of the Year. Koli uses pop culture to get people to do things, like TED’s Countdown on climate change (2021) or panels on women’s empowerment. She says, “Stories change the world.”
Personal Life: Love, Laughter, and New Things to Do
Koli’s story is just as sweet as her content. In 2023, after 13 years of dating, she announced her engagement to lawyer Vrishank Khanal, who works for Morgan Stanley and went to the University of Mumbai. On February 25, 2025, they got married in a small ceremony in Karjat led by a female pundit. This was a mix of old and new. Fans of the “modern fairy tale” took to social media to talk about how much they loved their relationship. Koli wrote Too Good To Be True, a HarperCollins romance novel, in 2025. It sold 150,000 copies in its first month. It was turned into a music video and is about love and self-doubt, which are themes that are important to her. She has also sung on songs like “Lost and Found” (2024) and “Raazdaariyan” (2025).
Koli’s empire, which is made up of money from acting, endorsements, and YouTube, is worth about ₹26 crores (about $3 million). She has a ₹50 lakh apartment in Mumbai and a ₹40 lakh Toyota Fortuner, which show how successful she is.
Legacy: A Creator Who Motivates
Prajakta Koli is more than just a star as of October 2025; she’s a movement. Her work, from viral sketches to speeches at the UN, shows us that authenticity is what makes influence grow. At the North Carolina edition of the Jaipur Literature Festival not long ago, she talked about love and trust in literature and how they relate to her own life. And UNDP praised her at UNGA80 for “energizing” youth climate action with stories that people could relate to.
What does Koli say? “Be mostly sane in a world that isn’t.” She’s not done yet. There are more seasons of Mismatched, advocacy campaigns, and maybe even another book on the way. In a world where people want things to be real, Prajakta Koli is the voice we need—funny, strong, and always moving forward.