Kamiya Jani-Founder's Insights June 2025 Edition 22

In May 2025, Kamiya Jani, isn’t a red-carpet selfie or a viral vada pav reel. It’s the sound of army boots crunching gravel when she arrives at border posts like Fazilka, Suratgarh, Kibithu, Dichu, Uri, or Poonch—carrying sacks full of handwritten letters with Sandese Aate Hain stamped across the top. This heartfelt campaign, launched with JK Paper during the emotionally charged Operation Sindoor, has seen thousands of letters collected from school kids, office-goers, grandparents, and even the families of soldiers. And Kamiya doesn’t just organize the deliveries—she shows up, in person, at the borders. The jawans don’t expect it. Some stand there stunned, reading silently. Others tear up while holding onto the letters like they're holding a piece of home. One soldier told her, “Ma’am, this sheet of paper feels heavier than my rifle.” It stuck with her. This wasn’t just a project. It became her mission—to close the emotional gap between citizens and the armed forces. These days, she gets calls from commanders when letters stop coming in. And schools across the country are now lining up to write for the next round.

That same love for country shows up quietly in her work at Curly Tales too. While she’s known everywhere as a top travel and food content creator in India, Kamiya’s storytelling always puts culture at the center. Like in 2023, when she was invited to film by Maldives Tourism.

She didn’t focus on just beaches or luxury stays—instead, she brought out the lives of locals, their food, and their daily rhythms. Within weeks, Indian bookings spiked. That’s the impact of stories that actually mean something. The response to her Sandese Aate Hain initiative proves it even more. Reels showing her visits to the borders often do better than celebrity brunches. SEO data backs it up—terms like Kamiya Jani letters to Indian soldiers are trending hard, beating many generic travel videos and influencer reels in organic reach.

But none of this came overnight. Long before she was a travel name, Kamiya spent nearly a decade in TV news. Starting at CNBC’s digital team, then Bloomberg UTV, and finally anchoring business news on ET Now for six years. It was a good job, no doubt. But she felt boxed in. One day, she walked out—with a toddler in one arm and a camera in the other. In those early days, she shot street food videos at sunrise and edited them during her daughter’s nap time. There were no sponsors waiting. No media shoutouts. And most videographers preferred to build their own content channels. But she kept going.

Today, Curly Tales has more than 4.34 million YouTube subscribers, 1.8 Million on Instagram, and 4.2 million on Facebook!

Recognition has followed, but that’s not what drives her. Still, it feels good when it happens—like the Wonder Women Trailblazer award, or being named Food Influencer of the Year at Influencex23, or getting the National Creators Award for Best Travel Creator in 2024 from Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself. That moment meant something—it wasn’t about numbers, it was about being seen.

She’s still that same person who wakes up at 5 am for shoots and chooses vada pav over fancy hors d'oeuvres. Maybe that’s why people trust her.

And there’s more. She’s also opened Imlee, The Chaat Galli, her own restaurant. And she still hosts the hit series Sunday Brunch with Kamiya Jani, where stars like Virat Kohli, Sara Ali Khan, and Kapil Sharma open up over a meal. And yes—she insists on tasting everything she films. Every single time.

Behind the scenes, she’s working on a travel docu-series that’ll take viewers through India’s Northeast and parts of the Balkans. Her limited-edition merch—passport covers, spice kits, etc.—sell out quickly. There’s even a travel planning tool in the pipeline. People do doubt her sometimes, but she doesn’t mind. “That’s what makes it fun,” she shrugs.Inside her gear bag, taped to her camera, are nine words she scribbled years ago and never removed: “Travel is not miles, travel is meaning for me.”

And honestly, for someone who can deliver both food and feelings in equal measure—that might just be the only strategy that matters.