MediaVidea

Anyone can be a blogger. There are no significant barriers to entry and the software is free. You can host on Blogger.com/Wordpress.com/Posterous.com to avoid spending money on hosting.

Anyone can be a blogger. This is also the biggest obstacle to succeeding as a professional blogger.

Read this blog post on the difficulties facing an aspiring professional blogger. The main points:
1, Any career that has minimal barriers to entry is not going to be accepted by those that are more conservative.

Their belief is that you should have to go to school, receive training, and at least do something to earn the right or the experience/knowledge needed to become a blogger.  

2. (Regular) Schools do not teach blogging
If they can teach creative writing and journalism, why not blogging, which incorporates both disciplines and does more.

Blogging is a relatively new field. School and colleges are usually ten years behind the real world in terms of determining what training is vital to the workforce. Many colleges only recently began offering degrees in Web Design. I work at a high school in New York. I have yet to see any teacher complete or attempt any lesson plans related to blogging.

3. What makes successful bloggers stand apart? 
There are many guides on the topic online. Just Google it.
The short version: You must cover a niche like anything, like nobody has ever done ever before.

...most successful bloggers are far more sophisticated in their blogging activities than those that fail.  While some folks are superb writers and luck into the right niche, the successful bloggers I know are constantly testing, reviewing, and planning how to best construct their blogs. The blog is treated as a business at all times. Anyone can start a business, not many are successful.

Three Indian bloggers who are doing okay as professional bloggers: Amit Agarwal (Digital Inspiration Blog), Aashish Sinha (Pluggd.in) and Nikhil Pahwa (Medianama)