This YouTuber Used To Live In A Hut, Now Drives A Rs 80 Lakh Mercedes Benz SUV
YouTube has changed the lives of many creators. We have seen many rising to fame and amassing wealth by creating content consistantly on the video platform. Manoj Dey is one of the biggest and most popular YouTubers in India. He has over 7.2 million subscribers on YouTube and more than 1.6 million followers on Instagram at the time of writing this article. Dey had recently made headlines by purchasing a Mercedes GLC SUV worth over 80 lakh rupees! This impressed many as the Youtuber had had extremely modest beginnings. He used to live in a small hut once. From a hut to a Mercedes SUV, this Youtuber has indeed had a rags-to-riches journey.
The Rags To Riches Story
Manoj Dey is from Jharkhand. He came from a very modest background and thus had to face a lot of financial challenges in the early stages of his journey. His father used to repair bicycles in the village and he studied in a regular government school.
In his early days as a YouTuber, Dey used to create videos with basic equipment and did side jobs to make additional sums. He even learned video editing through free tools. Like most other creators, Dey had to battle low viewership and self-doubt at many points in time.
Not many would know this, but three of Dey’s YouTube channels failed drastically. One was a channel in which he used to post videos of himself singing, while another had comedy as content.
The third was a tech channel which grew well, but got its AdSense disabled mid-way. No AdSense means no ad money! He kept consistent and continued content creation with newer strategies and finally rose to immense acceptance and viewership online.
Money started flowing in, and he upgraded his equipment and studio accordingly. Today, Dey owns and runs multiple channels and produces high-quality videos. He is estimated to earn around Rs 10 lakh per month.
From Celerio X To Mercedes GLC
Dey’s story is indeed inspiring. He has had an even more inspiring journey with the cars in his life. In 2019, Manoj Dey owned a Maruti Celerio X ( the wannabe crossover based on the Celerio). In 2021, he upgraded to a Tata Harrier Dark edition. In 2024, he bought a Toyota Fortuner Legender.
In January this year, this Legender was involved in an accident in which it took serious damages. It collided with an auto-rickshaw. The YouTuber was fortunately not present inside at the time of the crash.
In a video shared later, Dey clarified that it was his cousin who was driving the SUV when it crashed. Later, the YouTuber informed through a video that the Legender was beyond repair and he would have to look for a replacement.
Soon, Dey added a new vehicle to his garage- a brand-new Mercedes Benz GLC 300. A video of him taking delivery of the luxury SUV was shared online. He used the Fortuner’s insurance money to pay a part of the GLC’s price. The proceeds from selling his Harrier were also used to pay for the Mercedes SUV. The GLC 300 has an ex-showroom price of Rs 80 lakh in India.
Even though he is based out of Jharkhand, Dey took delivery of his Mercedes from the dealer in Delhi. He revealed in a video that the Delhi dealership offered him the best deal. He also said that some amount of financing was also involved in the purchase.
Dey has shared multiple videos of him with the newly-bought Mercedes on his social media handles. People seem to be impressed (and inspired) by his success.