Dhar Mann
| Name | Dhar Mann |
|---|---|
| Birth Date | 1984 |
| Birth Place | United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur; film producer; YouTuber |
| Years Active | 2010–present |
| Known For | Founder of Dhar Mann Studios |
| Partner | Laura Gurrola (2015–present) |
| Children | 2 |
Dhar Mann (born 1984) is an American entrepreneur, film producer, and digital creator best known as the founder and chief executive behind Dhar Mann Studios, a Burbank-based production company that makes short, scripted videos with moral themes for platforms including YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.[1] His channels and company pages have amassed tens of millions of followers across platforms, and the studio operates industrial-style soundstages and offices in the Burbank media corridor.[1] In 2025, TIME named Dhar Mann to the inaugural TIME100 Creators list recognizing influential digital voices.[2]
Early life and family
Mann was born in 1984 to parents who emigrated from India and established businesses in Oakland, California, including a taxi fleet known as Friendly Cab and extensive real-estate holdings.[3] Local news coverage and court filings have described the family enterprises and their Oakland property network.[4][5]
Early ventures
Before his current media work, Dhar Mann founded and invested in several ventures. In 2010 he co-founded weGrow, a hydroponics retailer marketed for medical marijuana cultivation, which drew national media attention as a cannabis-adjacent chain concept.[6][7] The concept later shuttered amid partner disputes and litigation.[8]
In 2012, Alameda County prosecutors charged Mann in connection with misuse of Oakland redevelopment grants through his real-estate firm MannEdge Properties; he pleaded no contest in 2013 to five counts, received probation, and was ordered to pay restitution and fines.[9][10][11] A related civil matter against family entities concluded in 2015 with a city announcement of a settlement and compliance measures.[12]
Mann also co-founded the cosmetics subscription company LiveGlam in the mid-2010s, expanding from social-first beauty tutorials into e-commerce with Laura Gurrola as creative director.[13]
Dhar Mann Studios
Main article: Dhar Mann Studios
Founding and format
Mann founded Dhar Mann Studios (DMS) in 2018 to produce high-volume, short scripted videos often framed as morality tales with reversals and lessons about behavior such as bullying, prejudice, dishonesty, and empathy.[1] The stories feature a recurring repertory cast and are distributed natively on social platforms, particularly YouTube and Facebook.[1] Commentators have compared the tone and structure to classic “after-school specials” and educational shorts, updated for algorithmic video feeds.[14]
Facilities, scale, and output
By 2025 the studio operated large stages and offices encompassing roughly 125,000 square feet in the Burbank area, employing around 200 staff and working with thousands of actors annually, according to media reporting.[1] Coverage in trade and business press has described DMS’s shift toward more traditional entertainment infrastructure and senior hires from legacy TV to manage expansion into additional genres and distribution including FAST channels.[15]
Audience and distribution
DMS releases multiple episodes weekly and edits content episodically for Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat and other feeds; in 2021 the company launched a dedicated Dhar Mann Studios mobile app for ad-free viewing that briefly reached No. 1 on Apple’s U.S. chart for entertainment apps upon release.[16][17]
Recognition and business profile
Mann has appeared on creator-economy lists and in mainstream business coverage. In 2024 and 2025, Forbes ranked him #2 on its annual Top Creators list, estimating eight-figure earnings and highlighting his studio’s multi-platform reach.[18][19] In July 2025, TIME named Dhar Mann to the first TIME100 Creators, noting his channel’s large YouTube audience and signature “after-school special” style for the social era.[2]
Reception
Scholarly and journalistic commentary on Dhar Mann videos frequently focuses on their didactic, moralizing frame—praised by some audiences for accessible life lessons and criticized by others as simplistic or “cringe.”[2] The formula has nonetheless proven highly visible on recommendation-driven platforms and has been emulated by other creators and short-form studios.[1]
Workplace concerns and protests
In February 2023, a small group of recurring actors who worked at Dhar Mann Studios staged demonstrations outside a Burbank facility, alleging low pay and calling for meetings about working conditions.[20] Coverage framed the dispute in the context of non-union social-video sets and broader 2023 labor activism in Hollywood.[21] Mann disputed the claims in social posts and statements, defending the studio’s practices and disclosing typical rates for background and principal day players; reporting noted the studio continued production during the protests.[22]
Other media and partnerships
Mann has pursued representation and business partnerships as his studio has grown. Trade reports have linked DMS with talent-agency representation and veteran media executives as part of a strategy to expand output, formats, and distribution, including experimentation with podcasts, vertical video, and FAST channels.[23]
Personal life
Dhar Mann has been in a long-term relationship with social-media personality and beauty entrepreneur Laura Gurrola (“Laura G”), with whom he has two daughters.[24] In late 2020 he purchased a home in Calabasas, California, previously owned by Khloé Kardashian; the $15.5 million deal set a local price record at the time, according to design and real-estate media.[25]
Awards and honors
Audience Honor – Best YouTube Presence (Shorty Awards), for overall channel presence (2021; organization page).[26]
Nominee, Favorite Male Creator – Kids’ Choice Awards (2024).[27]
Honoree, TIME100 Creators (2025).[2]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 YouTube turns 20 years old. How it changed TV as we know it., Los Angeles Times, April 23, 2025
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Dhar Mann Is on the 2025 TIME100 Creators List, TIME.com, July 9, 2025
- ↑ Oakland landlord hit with $3.9 million penalty for hazardous housing conditions, The Oaklandside, September 13, 2021
- ↑ People of the State of California, Statement of Decision (City of Oakland v. DODG Corp. & SBMANN2), Alameda County Superior Court, September 1, 2021
- ↑ Longtime landlords to pay Oakland $3.9M for tenants' rights violations, CBS San Francisco, September 14, 2021
- ↑ 'Walmart of Weed' to open in Arizona, promote growing your own, CNN, May 31, 2011
- ↑ WeGrow’s “Joint Venture” Goes Up in Smoke, March 1, 2011
- ↑ Proposal for Marijuana Factories Prompts a Battle for Control, The New York Times, July 18, 2010
- ↑ Oakland pot entrepreneur charged with fraud, SFGate, May 18, 2012
- ↑ Oakland pot mogul pleads no contest to grant fraud, SFGate, December 11, 2013
- ↑ Oakland’s “Wal-Mart of Weed” Pleads No Contest to Fraud, NBC Bay Area, December 12, 2013
- ↑ Oakland City Attorney Secures Settlement in Fraud Case Against Prominent Taxi Family, Oakland City Attorney, April 23, 2015
- ↑ Who Owns LiveGlam? The Cruelty-Free and Vegan Cosmetics Company, Market Realist, January 20, 2022
- ↑ Dhar Mann Is on the 2025 TIME100 Creators List, TIME.com, July 9, 2025
- ↑ Dhar Mann Studios is just one creator outpost coming for Hollywood, Marketing Brew, August 13, 2025
- ↑ YouTube Moralist Dhar Mann Launches His Own Video App, Rockets to No. 1 on Apple, Tubefilter, October 22, 2021
- ↑ Dhar Mann (App Store listing), Apple App Store, August 14, 2025
- ↑ Top Creators 2024: The Influencers Turning Buzz Into Billions, Forbes, October 28, 2024
- ↑ Forbes Top Creators 2025, Forbes, June 16, 2025
- ↑ Actors for popular Burbank-based YouTube channel protest for better wages, work conditions, ABC7 Los Angeles, February 14, 2023
- ↑ 'Beast Games' set issues highlight growing pains in YouTuber-run productions, NBC Los Angeles, November 2024
- ↑ Moral video creator Dhar Mann responds to the protest launched by some of his regular actors, Tubefilter, February 14, 2023
- ↑ Dhar Mann Studios is just one creator outpost coming for Hollywood, Marketing Brew, August 13, 2025
- ↑ Who Owns LiveGlam? The Cruelty-Free and Vegan Cosmetics Company, Market Realist, January 20, 2022
- ↑ Khloé Kardashian Sells $15.5 Million Calabasas Mansion to Dhar Mann, Architectural Digest, November 5, 2020
- ↑ Dhar Mann – The Shorty Awards, Shorty Awards, 2021
- ↑ Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards 2024: Winners and highlights, People, July 14, 2024
External links
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