- Indians log on to the net for jobs, politics, cricket, movies and social networking
- Young India follows anti - corruption crusader Anna Hazare on the net
- Khans rule the net with their movies Bodyguard and Ra One
Google India today announced its annual Zeitgeist lists - the popular and fastest rising search queries from India in 2011. From local politics in India and looking for information on Lokpal bill and Aadhar cards, to looking for news on the Japan earthquake and Osama Bin Laden’s death, people turned to Google to learn more about what was happening in India and around the world.
“Google Zeitgeist 2011 truly makes India come alive, giving us insights into India’s development as a nation. 2011 saw Indian Internet becoming mainstream - over 70% of search happened in non-metros, a lot of Internet usage moved to mobiles and we hit the 125 million users mark. And for the first time, the online world mirrored the sentiments of the aam admi, with Indians logging on to the net to share opinions, voice concerns, apart from searching for entertainment, edutainment and jobs,” says Lalitesh Katragadda, Country Head - India Products.
The search data showcases some fascinating cultural fads and trends that took over India in 2011. Topping the list of fastest rising people queries of 2011, is Anna Hazare, who ignited passion amongst Indians. IBPS (Institute of Banking Personnel Selection) was one of the fastest rising searches, showing the high interest in online applications for Government employment. Indian Railways continued to be a popular search term, with Indians getting online to book tickets and searching for train timings and other railway-related information.
Katrina Kaif continued her reign as the queen of Bollywood and is the most searched celebrity on the net for the fourth year in a row, followed by the heart throb Salman Khan at #3. New entrant in the list fluttering some hearts is the Bollywood glam queen Anushka Sharma. The Khans came on top once again, with Salman Khan’s Bodyguard, the most searched movie for 2011 and Shahrukh’s Indian super hero act in Ra One making it to the second spot. The Southern states showered local love and made sure Mankatha and Dookudu found a place in the top 10 movies lists.
In a country where cricket is a religion, it came as no surprise to see the Indian net buzzing with excitement with the historic World Cup win, IPL and Sachin Tendulkar’s batting prowess.
Like the rest of the world, India searched for international heroes, with searches for technology pioneer Steve Jobs rising following his resignation in August and spiking dramatically following his death in October. Justin Bieber also featured in the top searched people lists, for his music, love life and hairstyles.
Consumer technology remained hot and the social web continued to give a strong showing as Indians logged on to stay connected with family and friends and wanted more from their mobile phones by searching for “way2sms”.
“With low-priced smart phones and 3G rolling out across the country, more and more Indians are accessing the Internet through their mobile. For millions of them it is their first experience of the Internet. Today, searches through mobile are not very different from web searches and capture the mood of the masses. What’s amazing is that our data tells us that this trend is only the beginning of the mobile Internet explosion.” adds Lalitesh.
Zeitgeist Explained
Google reveals the Internet "Zeitgeist" (German for "the spirit of the times") through an exploration of the billions of search queries we receive each year. In addition to the Year-end Zeitgeist, which highlights the top trends of 2011, we also have several tools that give insight into global, regional, past and present search trends. Google Zeitgeist tools can never be used to identify individual users because we rely on anonymized, aggregated counts of how often certain search queries occur over time. These tools are available year-round for you to play with, explore, and learn from: [http://www.googlezeitgeist.com/#en/]
About Google Inc.
Google’s innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google’s targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.
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