It?s that time of the year when Google puts out its annual list of most popular search queries. Called the annual Zeitgeist (in German it means spirit of the times), Google India?s 2011 list has thrown up Lokpal Bill and Aadhar as two of the most searched words among many others. Not bad, as one would think India only searched for movie stars and cricketers.
Anna Hazare tops the list of the ?fastest rising people? category. It is pretty impressive that internet users (and lion?s chunk of them are under 40 years of age) searched for the activist in large numbers. Interestingly, the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) was one of the fastest rising searches, showing the high interest in online applications for government employment! That may be a surprise for most, but it shows the kind of faith that Indians have for the public sector, even after all these years of corporate progress. Indian Railways was another highly searched term, with Indians getting online to book tickets and searching for train timings and other railway-related information. No wonder most airlines are in the red!
Zeitgeist clearly is a great tool to find what is ticking in Indian?s minds. It just shows how unpredictable our countrymen are, and most often the truth is not something we assume it to be. Over 70% of search happened in non-metros. A lot of internet usage have moved to mobiles, even as the country hit the 125 million users mark. And for probably the first time, the online world mirrored the sentiments of the common man, with Indians logging on to the Net to share opinions, voice concerns, apart from searching for entertainment and jobs, according to Lalitesh Katragadda, Google?s country head (India products).
Not surprisingly, Bollywood and cricket remained buzzwords in the Indian context.
Katrina Kaif continued to dominate in this space and emerged as the most searched celebrity on the Net for the fourth year in a row, followed by Salman Khan. Anushka Sharma is another highly searched name. The Khans came on top once again, with Salman Khan?s Bodyguard, becoming the most searched movie for 2011 and Shahrukh?s Ra One coming second.
Internationally, Steve Jobs undoubtedly was a key search; and Justin Bieber also featured in the top for his music, love life and hairstyles? not necessarily in that order. Consumer technology remained top of the heap in 2011 as well and the social web pulled its weight, with Indians connecting with family and friends and wanted more from their mobile phones by searching for stuff like ?way2sms?.
India?s diversity and unpredictability?the Zeitgeist has just proved that. Again.