Prayag Mishra
Born	c. 1997–1998 South Delhi, India
Other name	Big Pookie
Citizenship	Canada
Occupations	Social media personality Actor
Years active	2021–present
Known for	TikTok content creation "sassy man apocalypse" movement Prem in Late Bloomer
Instagram information
Page	Prayag
Years active	2015–present[a]
Followers	846 thousand
TikTok information
Page	Prayag
Years active	2021–present
Followers	4.1 million
Last updated: 24 July 2026

Prayag Mishra (born c. 1997–1998) is a Canadian social media personality and actor, known online by the handle @444pray. He rose to prominence in 2023 as a TikTok creator whose videos, often filmed from the front seat of his car, helped popularize what became known online as the "sassy man apocalypse" movement. He later transitioned into acting, making his television debut in the third season of the Crave comedy series Late Bloomer.

Mishra was born in South Delhi, India. His family moved to the United States during the 2008 recession before settling in Canada in 2011.^[1] He grew up across different South Asian communities, an upbringing he has credited with shaping his culturally fluid, internet-native personality.^[1] He attended college for business management, and during his studies was part of a student journalism team, having long been interested in broadcast and media work.^[2]

Before pursuing content creation full-time, Mishra held a series of jobs, including door-to-door sales of telecommunications services and later a position in corporate tech sales.^[2] He has said he struggled to reconcile his outgoing personality with the more reserved persona expected of him in a corporate office setting, and that being laid off from that job felt like a release rather than a setback.^[3]

Mishra began posting videos on TikTok around 2021, developing a following gradually over roughly two years before experiencing a sudden surge in popularity.^[3] His signature format involved sitting alone in his parked car, speaking directly into the camera as though addressing a romantic partner he calls "Pookie", a device he has described as a way of building companionship during a period of loneliness and self-reflection following a breakup and job loss.^[2]

In late September 2023, a short video in which Mishra used the phrase "it's the way you act" went viral, drawing millions of likes and rapidly accelerating his follower count.^[4][3] Within roughly two weeks his TikTok following grew from around 29,000 to more than 1.7 million, and continued climbing to 2.5 million, then over 4 million, and eventually past 5 million by early 2024.^[5][6][4][2] Mishra refers to his fanbase collectively as "Pookie Nation" or "Pookie bears".^[2][5]

At the height of his rapid growth, Mishra was briefly suspended from TikTok in October 2023. He has said he believes the suspension occurred because his account was gaining roughly 100,000 followers every eight hours, a rate that triggered platform review.^[5] His fans organized a Change.org petition calling for his reinstatement, and his account was restored about 25 hours later; he says he gained hundreds of thousands of additional followers immediately after returning.^[5]

Mishra became widely identified as a leading figure in the "sassy man apocalypse", an online trend—originally coined on X in 2022—celebrating expressive, emotionally open men who reject traditionally stoic norms of masculinity.^[3][6] Commentators and outlets including the Los Angeles Times and NBC News framed his popularity as a counterpoint to hypermasculine "manosphere" influencers such as Andrew Tate.^[3][6][1]

In interviews, Mishra has said his approach to masculinity is not tied to appearing tough or deep-voiced, and that he sees his openness and playfulness as a deliberate departure from influencers who promote transactional or adversarial views of relationships between men and women.^[2][3] Academic commentators quoted in coverage of the trend, including a communication professor at the University of Houston–Clear Lake, cautioned against treating any single creator as a solution to broader questions about toxic masculinity, while acknowledging the conversation the trend had opened.^[6]

His use of the term "pookie" as an affectionate nickname for his audience also became a wider cultural touchstone, discussed alongside other viral uses of the word in student and campus media coverage.^[7]

Alongside his social media work, Mishra pursued acting, including earlier short films and commercial work.^[2] In 2026, he made his scripted television debut in the third season of Late Bloomer, a half-hour Crave original dramedy created by and starring Jasmeet Raina.^[8] The season premiered on Crave and Amazon Prime Video on April 24, 2026.^[8][9] In the series, Mishra plays Prem, described in production materials as a fast-rising social media star and rival to Raina's lead character, Jasmeet Dutta.^[8] Reviewers noted the casting was fitting, since Prem's persona closely echoes Mishra's real-life online image as an ever-more-online, hungrier successor to the show's protagonist.^[1][9]

Late Bloomer is produced by Blink49 Studios and Ethriel Productions in association with Bell Media, with support from the Canada Media Fund, the Bell Fund, and Canadian tax credit programs.^[8] The season's cast also includes Baljinder Singh Atwal, Ashley Ganger, Sugenja Sri, Ahamed Weinberg, and Sukhman Gill, among others.^[8]

Mishra has also described broader career interests beyond acting and content creation, including public speaking and business ventures such as investing and personal-brand building.^[2] Reflecting on his growth as a creator, he has said he now encourages aspiring influencers to prioritize formal education, arguing that academic study and reading offer value that social media metrics cannot replace.^[1]

Mishra has cited his older sister as a significant influence on his views about relationships and dating, describing her as someone who has offered him perspective he could not get from male peers.^[2][3] He has spoken about his family's background as immigrants and has described their support and pride in his career shift as meaningful to him.^[2]

As of a May 2026 profile in Vogue India, Mishra was 28 years old.^[1]

• Late Bloomer (TV series)
• Jasmeet Raina