Indian man called out for flaunting his Emirates first class flight: ‘This video is cringe’

Indian YouTuber Ishan Sharma recently flew first class on an Emirates flight and documented the entire experience for his social media audience. However, the 23-year-old has come under fire for the video, with many calling it ‘show off’ behaviour and accusing him of flaunting his wealth.

Sharma had claimed in a 2024 video that he earns upwards of ₹35 lakh a month. The BITS Goa dropout called it a “small amount” that “does not allow him to go outside and do business.” He had been trolled at that time for bragging about his money.

Now, Sharma is again the target of similar accusations - this time for his Emirates video. The YouTuber gave his audience a tour of his “private suite 40,000 feet in the air”, showing them all the amenities that come with the luxury experience.

These amenities included a 24-inch television, unlimited snacks, a variety of drinks, comfortable seating, and even a separate space to store his luggage. His videos, shared on Instagram and YouTube, also show how Emirates cabin crew attended to him.

On Instagram, Sharma added text on his video which read: “Work while they sleep. Learn while they party. Save while they spend. Then live like they dream.”

On YouTube, he explained that he was flying back to India from Seattle on an Emirates flight. He had been invited by Microsoft to the United States. Sharma said that flying first class had been a “dream come true” and expressed his gratitude to the people who supported him on his content creation journey.

“I’m just glad I did not give up after all the negativity on Twitter. After all my hostel mates at BITS started trolling me for starting a YouTube channel,” he said.

The backlash

While the YouTuber may have been expressing gratitude for all he’s received in life, social media users were not done with the negativity. The comments section of his post was filled with comments from people who accused him of ‘flaunting’ his wealth.

“This video is so cringe in every sense. It screams oh wow look at me I’m flying business because I work while they sleep,” opined one Instagram user.

“But had you been content with all the achievements, wouldn’t you just be enjoying the experience instead of focusing on recording it? Are you after the career related achievements or social validation/acceptance?” another asked.

“I haven’t seen any Ambanis or global elite showing or glorifying their success. Why most of the time either a course seller or a trader shows this?” a third person asked.

But Sharma also found plenty of well-wishers who applauded his success. “Awesome, Ishan! We can feel your joy through your words. Wishing you all the best!” wrote a commenter on YouTube.