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Karl Rock

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Karl Rock
Personal information
Born
Karl Edward Rice[1]

Auckland, New Zealand
OriginNew Zealand
Occupations
SpouseManisha Malik
Websitewww.karlrock.com
YouTube information
Channel
LocationDelhi, India
Years active2017–present
Genre(s)Vlogs, educational videos
Subscribers2.92 million[2]
(7 June 2024)
Total views1 billion[2]
(7 June 2023)
100,000 subscribers2018
1,000,000 subscribers2020

Karl Edward Rice, known online as Karl Rock, is a New Zealand blogger[3] and YouTuber based in India. He is best known for his vlogs, which are centred around his travels in the Indian subcontinent, and his book How to Travel in India.[4][5][6][7]

Early and personal life

Rock was born in 1982 in Auckland, New Zealand where he attended and graduated from the University of Auckland.[8] He frequently travelled to India.[9][10][11] In 2019, he married Manisha Malik, an Indian woman from Haryana;[12][13] he resided with Malik in Delhi until his blacklisting by the Government of India in 2020, which cancelled his travel visa.[14] Rock holds dual citizenship of New Zealand and the Netherlands.[15]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Rock received public praise on Twitter from Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, for his efforts in donating plasma at a donation bank of the Government of Delhi.[16]

BBC Panorama investigation

As part of an investigation with BBC Panorama, Rock teamed up with Jim Browning, a scambaiter and fellow YouTuber, for a joint infiltration into a large-scale technical support scamming operation in the Indian city of Gurgaon, Haryana.[17] The duo recorded footage of the scamming facility via drones and CCTV, and also downloaded 7000 scam-call recording files from the scammers' computers. Their investigation video series was centred around the tendency of scammers to target elderly people and computer-illiterates in countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States, and locally in the Indian subcontinent.[18][19]

India blacklisting controversy

In July 2021, Rock uploaded a video on YouTube explaining that his travel visa was cancelled shortly after he left India in October 2020 to travel to Pakistan through Dubai. Upon his attempts to apply for a new visa in Dubai, he was informed that he had been blacklisted by the Government of India and was prohibited from re-entering India.[20] He had last entered the country in November 2019.[20][21] Rock stated that there was no official reason provided by the Indian government for his blacklisting and that he had not received any response from India's Ministry of Home Affairs following his attempts to contact them.[1] In a statement, India's Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs stated that Rock had been blacklisted for "multiple visa violations on his last visit". In the context of the blacklisting, an Indian government official stated that Rock had committed a violation by engaging in business activities while on a tourist visa.[22]

Rock returned to India in April 2022, after the restrictions on his entry into the country had been lifted. Rock had promised in April 2022 to make a video about the specifics of this case, but as of May 2024 he has not done so.[23]

References

  1. ^ a b Mihindukulasuriya, Regina (9 July 2021). "NZ YouTuber Karl Rock claims India 'blacklisted' him, moves HC to come back to wife & 'home'". ThePrint. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  2. ^ a b "About Karl Rock". YouTube.
  3. ^ How I Make MASALA CHAI for My Mother-in-Law Recipe ☕, 23 May 2020, archived from the original on 18 September 2021, retrieved 18 September 2021
  4. ^ "Social media star: Meet Karl Rock, the Kiwi YouTuber who was praised by the Delhi Chief Minister". Hindustan Times. 20 September 2020. Archived from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  5. ^ "Karl Rock's Blog - Travel Safety, Advice, & the Best of Incredible India". Karl Rock's Blog. Archived from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  6. ^ "India survival guide". Indiasurvivalguide.com. Archived from the original on 22 April 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  7. ^ "karl rock latest interview with 11 year old boy in 2021". news18.com. 8 January 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  8. ^ "Karl Rock - The University of Auckland". www.auckland.ac.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  9. ^ "Kiwi tourist charms locals in India by speaking Hindi". Stuff. 14 February 2018. Archived from the original on 3 February 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  10. ^ "Kiwi make over". nzherald.co.nz. 21 September 2018. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  11. ^ "karl surprises indians with hindi". nzedge.com. 12 February 2018. Archived from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  12. ^ "About Karl Rock – Karl Rock". Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
  13. ^ "YouTuber Karl Rock, Married to Indian Citizen, Blacklisted and Barred From Entering India". The Wire. Archived from the original on 23 July 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  14. ^ "YouTuber Karl Rock, who earned Kejriwal's praise for donating plasma last year, says blacklisted by Indian govt". The Indian Express. 10 July 2021. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  15. ^ "Vlogger's wife challenges govt.'s move blacklisting him". The Hindu. 10 July 2021. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  16. ^ Kejriwal, Arvind [@ArvindKejriwal] (10 July 2020). "Karl Rock, a New Zealand origin Delhiite donated plasma at Delhi govt's plasma bank You must watch his video about his experience. I am sure this will encourage many more to come forward to donate their plasma and help save lives. @iamkarlrock https://t.co/VySSg0P0yV" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2021 – via Twitter.
  17. ^ "confessions of a call centre worker pdf". refresh.bluefield.edu. Retrieved 25 January 2021.[permanent dead link‍]
  18. ^ "CBI raids 6 fraud centres". The Outlook India. 17 September 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  19. ^ "how two youtubers karl rock and jim browning are exposing fake call centres". navbharattimes.com. 16 December 2020. Archived from the original on 22 April 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  20. ^ a b "YouTuber Karl Rock, who earned Kejriwal praise for donating plasma last year, says blacklisted by Indian govt". The Indian Express. 9 July 2021. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  21. ^ Why I Haven't Seen My Wife in 269 Days #Blacklist, 9 July 2021, archived from the original on 9 July 2021, retrieved 9 July 2021
  22. ^ "Blogger Karl Rock says India has blocked his entry, MHA says he violated visa". The Indian Express. 9 July 2021. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  23. ^ "YouTuber Karl Rock returns to India after more than 500 days". The Indian Express. 17 April 2022. Archived from the original on 18 April 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
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