Eramangalam: Malayali youth Nihal Hameed has become Instagram's latest viral sensation. A video of Nihal posted on Instagram's official page has already been viewed by millions.
After rapper Hanumankind, Nihalka is the second Malayali to be followed by Instagram's official account.
Nihal Hameed is the eldest son of KC Hameed and Hairunnisa from Palappetty, Malappuram. He became active on social media about two years ago, initially starting an Instagram account under his own name before launching another account called "Nihalkkaa." It was through the videos posted on this page that Instagram reached out to him, requesting content.
Instagram usually selects videos from creators around the world to feature on its official page, and Nihal's content was among those chosen. During a trip to Bali, he recorded a reel which he later submitted to Instagram. The platform eventually posted it on its official account.
Instagram's official page has over 700 million followers but follows only around 205 accounts, making Nihalka the second Malayali to receive a follow-back, after Hanumankind. Nihalkkaa's Instagram page itself has around 1.2 million followers.
Earlier, videos from Nihal's original account had also been shared by the Indian Super League (ISL). Nihal studied up to Class 10 at Kadakassery Ideal School and completed his higher secondary education at Guruvayur Sreekrishna School. He later graduated from Al-Azhar College, Thodupuzha, with a BCA degree.
Academically, he also excelled, scoring an A+ in all subjects in the SSLC examination and achieving a perfect 600 out of 600 marks in Plus Two. Nihal has two younger brothers, Rishal Hameed and Ajzal Hameed.