Lofty views of cityscapes

JT Singh talks with a local while exploring an old neighborhood in Shanghai.

Their lens seamlessly weaves between the sparkling buildings of the financial district in Pudong New Area - where they traveled by boat and taxi, touring the impressive infrastructure - and lesser known aspects of Shanghai life, such as graffiti in the artists' community and poorer areas.

"Shanghai has this mix of a lower income and highly modernized population. The contradictions and contrasts make the city so amazing and interesting," Singh says.

Special: City Living

"Shanghai should be proud to show off the old parts, and it has done a very good job in preserving local architecture."

Shanghai's traditional delicacy, shengjian bao, or pan-fried dumplings, was also shown off, with the camera zooming into an old house's kitchen.

They also used Sina Weibo, a Chinese micro-blogging platform, to get locals involved in telling them about "the unique characteristics of Shanghai", and received a lot of help from the community.

But what really helped This is Shanghai chalk up half a million views within six days of its launch, Singh says, is the city itself.

The video, sponsored by Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administration, has won global recognition and been posted on hundreds of websites in different languages. The major US news network CBS called it "an absolute visual wonderland".

The video has also motivated a lot of national pride.

"We can see the intelligence and forward thinking of the video, which makes me very proud of my home city," says Zhou Shuwen, a 26-year-old Shanghai native who forwarded the video on her social network.

"I believe when citizens are proud of their city, we're happier, more productive and more enthusiastic in helping promote the city and become better citizens."

Singh says the Shanghai government is already talking about another video, which will focus more on people, human drama and the unique characteristics of the Shanghainese.

Many other cities in China are also interested, and thousands of people have posted comments on Singh's Weibo and on video websites asking them to make a similar video in Guangzhou or Xi'an. Singh says the response has been exciting and encouraging. He has prolonged his stay in China, and now plans to live in China for several years to help other Chinese cities become better known globally.

"Shanghai is one of the greatest ambassadors for China to the world, and this is the age when China is on the rise rapidly and more Chinese cities are becoming key players globally," Singh says.