By Jean Baptiste Ndabananiye
At not less than 70, when most people are expected to slow down, she defied the norm and accelerated—straight into the digital world. With no prior knowledge of the internet, she leaned on her grandson’s guidance, turned her passion into purpose. She has become a YouTube sensation with around 2 000 000 subscribers now and 4,000 subscribing each day since 2020 when she began, with millions of views each month since then. Today, her channel “Aapli Aaji” doesn’t just bring joy to millions but also produces a steady income, proving that age forms no barrier to reinvention.
Her story has already generated headlines, but beyond the viral success lies a deeper truth: every new beginning is a rebellion against limitations. More than anything, she offers a powerful testament that nobody should ever consent to their apparent limits defining them—because the moment you refuse to be boxed in, you open the door to endless possibilities.
She is actually a living testament to the extraordinary potential lying dormant within us all, defying expectations and rewriting the script on age and success. Her journey proves that the only true limits are the ones we choose to accept—and she has chosen to shatter them. By embracing the unknown, she unlocked not just a career, but a new chapter in life, showing that with relentless determination, anyone can transcend their circumstances and achieve the seemingly impossible.
Now this question arises: what has potentially enabled her to rise unbelievably above her limitations and attain this unconceivable feat? This article consists of these major sections:
- More information around her
- What has potentially enabled her to rise unbelievably above her limitations and attain this inconceivable feat?
- Conclusion
More information around her
I landed her story yesterday in Vivekandaha Sinha’s post on LinkedIn which read “Every day is a fresh start, no matter where you are in life. Whether you’re exploring a new career, picking up a new hobby, or just making a change, it’s never too late to begin something new. At 74, when many slow down, she stepped up and became a YouTube star with 1.76 million subscribers. With no prior internet knowledge, she started her journey.
It’s never too late to start pursuing your passions. Challenges are opportunities for personal growth. Every new beginning brings new lessons and experiences. Don’t be afraid to take that first step new beginnings are waiting for you. Age doesn’t define your potential.”
To be frank, I was so dumbfounded that I almost failed to understand and accept it. Yet, I was just immediately convinced by the fact it was recounted by Sinha who is trustworthy. Upon checking it on YouTube, I was stunned again. I noticed that the number of her subscribers had increased by around 20 000 ones, reaching 1 780 000 subscribers, since the time when Sinha had given the number of her subscribers in the above quote. A four-year video that I found had registered 4.4 million views with 106 000 likes and 5 850 comments. Various media organizations have written about her.
The Better India released an October 22, 2020 article headlined “70-Year-Old Maharashtra Grandma’s Recipes Wows YouTube, Bags 6 Lakh Subcribers” reported “Hailing from Ahmednagar, Suman Dhamane’s YouTube channel ‘Aapli Aaji’ has become popular for her Maharashtrian food recipes.”
“She never went to school, had an online account or ‘upskilled’ a day in her life. But this 70-year-old lady from rural Maharashtra still became a YouTube sensation. Suman Dhamne’s recipes from Sarola Kasar village, about 15 km from Ahmednagar, has over six lakh subscribers on her YouTube channel ‘Aapli Aaji’ (Our grandmother) – all in just six months.”
“I did not know what YouTube was and never thought about putting recipes on social media. But now I feel uneasy if I do not share any recipe on the channel,” Suman Dhamne said. The Better India added “Suman makes Maharashtrian dishes with homemade spices, all in traditional flavours. Impressed by her culinary skills, the channel has over 4,000 subscribing and millions of views each day.”
Behind every achievement— how remarkable it were— always stands a factor— support. Particularly for this senior, a true reason behind this incredible success is her grandchild. The Better India related “The tech support behind her feat is her millennial grandson, Yash Pathak who made everything possible.” Sharing how it all started with The Better India, the 17-year-old teenager said “Sometime around January, I told my grandma to cook Pav Bhaji for me. After watching a couple of recipe videos, she said she could make a better one.”
“I don’t know what she changed from the recipe videos, but the food was loved in the family. That is when the idea struck me to come up with a channel,” Yash said.
The teenager recounted to The Better India that after some discussions and planning, the first video – bitter gourd recipe – was uploaded in March. “It started getting viewers. Eventually, we uploaded recipes of groundnut chutney, green vegetables, Maharashtrian sweet dishes, eggplant and other traditional food recipes,” he added.
Yash added that analytics were showing about eight million views a month on his grandmother’s social media page. News 18 in its 28 December 2020 story entitled “Meet ‘Aapli Aaji’, the Grandmom Who Has Become a Youtube Sensation for Rustling up Tasty Dishes” said “She has has garnered over eight million views each month in just one year.”
Yash told The Better India “The latest one is a bakarwadi recipe video which garnered about two million views in a couple of weeks. Grandma did not know many English words like baking powder, sauce and others. I taught her to pronounce them correctly.”
According to The Better India, Suman said that the reason she felt her recipes were becoming popular are traditional cooking methods and spices. “The viewers often get tempted by the colour of the food items and spices. The viewers often request to have a call and discuss the recipe. Hundreds of people have asked for the spices,” Suman said.
What has potentially enabled her to rise unbelievably above her limitations and attain this inconceivable feat?
Her remarkable rise can be attributed to a combination of factors, a key powerful of which is her unwavering refusal to accept age or lack of knowledge as boundaries. First, she embraced the concept of lifelong learning, willing to start from scratch and tackle a new challenge head-on.
Her relationship with her grandson, Yash, has also played a pivotal role—his guidance not only helped her to navigate the digital world but also fueled her determination to prove that it’s never too late to reinvent oneself. Beyond this, she nurtured an unshakable belief in her own abilities, seeing each setback as an opportunity for growth rather than a limit to her potential.
This mindset, paired with her passion and commitment to creating meaningful content, empowered her to break through barriers and achieve a feat many would deem impossible at her age. In essence, her success didn’t involve rejecting her limitations, but refusing to let them define her journey.
The most probable—invisible— force behind her unimaginable success
People usually admire and follow unusual people and she is unusual. Her uniqueness represents a powerful factor in her success. People are naturally drawn to those who stand out from the crowd, and she embodies the essence of the unexpected. At not less than 70, stepping into the world of YouTube with no prior experience challenges conventional thinking about what is possible at any age.
This uniqueness, coupled with her cooking expertise, makes her not just a content creator, but a symbol of possibility. In a world full of predictable narratives, it’s the unusual stories—like hers—that inspire and capture the imagination of millions. People are not just following her for the content, but because she represents a refreshing, bold deviation from the ordinary, and that forms a truly magnetic aspect in her story.
Every person, especially those who’ve faced adversity, also holds the power to turn their struggles into strengths by embracing what differentiates them from others. It’s often our most unusual qualities—whether shaped by hardship, resilience, or unique experiences—that resonate the most with others. When we stop hiding behind conventional expectations and instead own our quirks and challenges, we allow ourselves to create a narrative that stands apart.
By doing so, we not only set ourselves apart but also attract those who are searching for authenticity and a story that mirrors their own struggles or aspirations. In a world saturated with predictable stories, it’s the unusual, the unexpected, and the real that captivate the masses, transforming every challenge into an opportunity to carve a distinctive path forward.
Conclusion
What has enabled her to rise above her limitations and achieve the seemingly impossible is a combination of her fearless mindset, unwavering determination, the willingness to embrace the unknown and especially executing the impossible. First, she refused to be confined by age, challenging the societal belief that at not less than 70, new ventures are out of reach. Instead, she saw her age as a strength, embodying wisdom and experience that connected with audiences looking for something authentic and real.
Additionally, her relationship with her grandson, Yash, was a catalyst—his guidance helped her navigate the digital world, but more importantly, his belief in her potential inspired her to take bold steps forward. This willingness to learn, coupled with her natural charisma and passion for sharing joy, allowed her to break through barriers that many would consider insurmountable. Ultimately, her success is rooted in a simple but profound truth: when we refuse to let our limitations define us, we unlock the door to our most extraordinary selves.
Dhamane is the second person who—we have heard, after Colonel Harland Sanders about whom you can learn more here— has attained incredible success at such age. Sanders at 65 accomplished unbelievable success too, after encountering countless hardships and failures.
Defy limits, embrace possibilities—your time is now!
Dhamane’s story is more than an inspiring tale—it’s a call to action for all of us. At 70, with no prior internet experience, she revolutionized her passion into purpose, proving that no obstacle—age, lack of knowledge, or societal expectations—can stand in the way of her reinvention.
Her journey challenges us to rethink our own limitations. What dreams have you postponed? What passions remain unexplored? The time to start is now. Whether you’re stepping into an unfamiliar space, learning a new skill, or taking a leap of faith, remember—your potential is limitless.
Refuse to be immobilized in a box. Break the mold. Step forward and write your own success story—just like Dhamane did. Begin today. The world is waiting for what only you can offer.