Rohit Khubchandani balances two distinct professional roles. By day, he serves as Regional Sales Director for Metropolis Technologies, a company specializing in smart parking and AI-powered security solutions across the Middle East and North Africa. In his complementary career, he builds a travel content business centered around genuine human experiences in a world increasingly driven by algorithms.

After moving from India to Dubai in 2003, Rohit began creating content, which enabled him to visit more than 50 countries over the course of two decades. Although he created a YouTube channel 13 years ago merely to share vacation videos with friends, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted more deliberate experimentation. The real transformation came in early 2025, following his attendance at creator events such as the 1 Billion Followers Summit and VidCon Abu Dhabi, when he developed his interview-based travel podcast after first testing “fake cast clips” focused on travel tips.

Rohit’s podcast, “Licensed to Explore with Rohit,” invites well-traveled guests to share their journeys, practical advice, and cultural insights. The UAE Media Council licensed creator started with zero followers in January and has since amassed over 50,000 followers on Facebook alone, with his content generating nearly 20 million views in just 90 days.

“The human touch is very important and relevant,” Rohit says. “You can easily go on Google Maps and check reviews, or you can ask ChatGPT about something, but when a real person is giving a real perspective based on real experiences, that’s a different story.”

Strategic Content Approach

What transformed Rohit’s creator trajectory in 2025 was his commitment to consistency and strategic planning. “Previously, I was not concerned about strategy. I was posting content randomly here and there, and I didn’t have a posting schedule,” he says. “Now, I have a very precise posting schedule, and I try to stick to that posting schedule as much as I can.”

His current strategy includes posting short-form vertical content 4-5 times a week across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube Shorts. 

His podcast follows a different cadence, with one episode released every 10 days. “Because of my day job and my other focus in life, it’s a bit overwhelming for me,” he admits. “So I had to balance it out. I thought that one [episode] is not good, two are not enough, and four are too demanding for me. So I chose a sweet spot of three.”

This approach also extends to content production methods. Rohit records multiple podcast episodes in batch sessions, typically on Fridays or weekends. “In a day, I’ll try to record three or four episodes,” he notes, allowing him to maintain a consistent release schedule despite his limited availability.

Another key decision was focusing exclusively on travel content. “I was always trying to do travel content. The only thing that was coming easily and naturally to me was travel content,” he says.

Rohit Khubchandani & Sofia Youssra Khaloufi (influencer)

Working Within UAE Guidelines

Operating as a content creator in the UAE comes with regulatory considerations. “A few years back, the UAE Media Council, which is a government body, came into play to regulate social media and creators,” he explains. “If you are posting any content on social media, paid or unpaid, especially when you work with brands, you need to have a valid permit or license from the UAE Media Council.”

Obtaining this license requires establishing a proper business entity. “You need to set up an establishment. It could be a sole proprietorship establishment or a limited liability company. And it has to include your activities, especially advertising on social media or e-commerce,” he says.

Balancing his demanding corporate role with content creation presents significant challenges. With more than 25 years of experience in the security technology sector, his role at Metropolis Technologies involves overseeing Vision AI initiatives across the Middle East and North Africa region.

“My job is a priority for me. It’s a corporate job with a lot of responsibility, not a nine-to-five,” he explains. “It’s flexible because I’m handling a big region. There is travel for work. There are meetings, schedules, and calls.”

To manage this balance, Rohit has assembled a small team. “Now I’m not a one-man army anymore,” he says. “I have a team of editors who edit for me. The editorial part is taken care of, which takes away a lot of my bandwidth. I still do a lot of posting. I have a researcher on the team who actually works on scripting and uses some AI engines.”

Rohit maintains a clear separation between his professional and creator identities online. “I bifurcate LinkedIn on the professional side of my journey and the rest of the social platforms more to do with my travel-related content and my podcast,” he says.

Content Strategy and Monetization

Rohit has discovered that content that evokes strong emotions tends to perform best. “I made a video which says that the best beach is actually in the Philippines, not in the Maldives. So people from the Maldives got really upset and confronted my opinion in the comments, ‘How can you say that? Who gave you the authority to say stuff like that.’”

Similar reactions followed content suggesting that $2 street tacos in Mexico are superior to those in fancy restaurants. “When people are commenting or sharing your content, even if it’s negative, the algorithm sees that traction and engagement are happening, and then it pushes it to more people,” he observes.

This strategy has produced results for Rohit, with one Instagram video garnering over 8 million views. He recently gained industry recognition, including a “Travel Influencer of the Year” award at the India International Influencers Awards 2025.

His monetization approach focuses primarily on brand partnerships and collaborations, with YouTube revenue serving as a secondary source. While he acknowledges that his YouTube channel is monetized, he candidly admits that “I’m not making the kind of revenue that I would like to make because the views are not that big on YouTube at the moment.”

Looking ahead, Rohit plans to expand the distribution of his podcast. “Season one of my podcast is doing pretty well. Of course, I want to grow it. I want to make sure it’s distributed more heavily,” he shares. “Right now, it’s on Spotify, Anghami, Deezer, Apple, Amazon, and YouTube. But I want to expand the channel to get the podcast into in-flight entertainment, get it on the taxis.”

Technology and Human Connection

While he embraces AI tools to enhance his workflow efficiency, Rohit remains committed to preserving authentic human connection in his content. “I do use AI for my research, scripting, and organizing my schedule,” he acknowledges. 

However, he firmly believes in combining technological efficiency with human genuineness. “It has to be a combination of real and AI. The real emotion and the real conversation. And you take help from AI to streamline your workflow.”

For aspiring creators, Rohit stresses the importance of consistency, focus, strategic planning, and avoiding the common mistake of undervaluing one’s work. “The biggest business mistake is underselling yourself,” he cautions. “Sometimes, you don’t realize what the potential is, and you are too excited to bring it on, and then you tend to make mistakes.”

As Rohit continues to build his travel content business while maintaining his corporate career, he exemplifies an emerging type of entrepreneurial creator who brings professional expertise, strategic thinking, and genuine passion to content creation. 

“I want to bring real humans, real conversations, and connections with real people,” he concludes. “To make sure that real emotions still exist and we are not all replaced by AI.”

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