Twitter India gives a snapshot of what trended in India with Twitter Statistics 2017 - take a look to find out what went viral in the year that went by.
In the eventful year of 2017, Twitter reflected the nation’s interest and growing activism towards addressing important news and political issues such as the implementation of GST, justice for Jallikattu, monsoons in Mumbai and the Supreme Court’s ban on Triple Talaq.
Consequently, #GST, #Jallikattu, #MumbaiRains and #TripleTalaq emerged as some of the top trending hashtags of the year.
Hashtags in context
Mann Ki Baat, the Indian radio programme hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which he addresses the people of the nation, was popular on Twitter and sparked a great deal of commentary and following, including one from cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar, who Tweeted about an episode as well.
A traditional Tamilian bull-taming sport that was in the spotlight earlier this year when PETA voiced its concerns regarding the sport involving alleged animal abuse and demanded a ban on it. This stirred up major outrage in the state of Tamil Nadu wherein people protested online and offline for the ban on Jallikattu to be lifted.
Conversations on Twitter regarding the rollout of India's biggest tax reform, GST, echoed the nation’s sentiment towards an event of national significance. The Ministry of Finance launched@askGST_GoI on Twitter for citizens to facilitate early resolution and clarification on queries related to GST.
Also Read: #SocialThrowback: Twitter 2017 – The year that was
In August 2017, people on Twitter cheered the Supreme Court of India’s decision to ban the practice of #TripleTalaq, an Islamic divorce practice wherein a man can divorce his wife by repeating the word 'talaq' thrice, on grounds of it being unconstitutional.
The effects of the highly controversial decision of #demonetisation taken in 2016 inevitably trickled down to 2017 as well and continued to be the topic for much discussion and deliberation on Twitter.
Mumbai experienced the highest rainfall that it has in the past 50 years causing widespread chaos in Mumbai and surrounding areas. The local community came together on Twitter, offering those who were stuck in the rain shelter as #rainhosts and food by using the hashtag #MumbaiRains
Launched by Prime Minister Modi in 2014, the campaign to clean up India by 2019 gained further momentum this year. Conversations on Twitter with #SwachhBharat discussed cleaning the streets and roads, getting rid of pollution, and constructing toilets in the country.
Uttar Pradesh is one of India's largest and most populated states where elections are conducted in 7 phases. The results of the election earlier this year -- a landslide victory for the ruling BJP -- took many by surprise. Twitter was abuzz through the entire period.
The Gujarat Elections held in PM Modi's home state became one of the country's hottest elections as the media pitted the Prime Minister directly against Congress President Rahul Gandhi. All campaigners and candidates leveraged Twitter heavily as part of their campaigns, and the elections was live streamed on the platform.
#Aadhaar has been a hot topic of discussion on Twitter for most part of this year with the government mandating an Aadhar card for every resident of the country, to be synced with their bank accounts and mobile phones. As the biometric Aadhaar card gets rolled out to every resident of India, Twitter discussions continue as experts cite privacy and security concerns regarding the collection and storage of sensitive data.
With #GujaratElections being one of the most significant and talked about events of the year, Narendra Modi (@narendramodi), Amit Shah (@amitshah) and Rahul Gandhi (@officeofrg) were among the Top 10 Most Mentioned Indian accounts on Twitter.
The platform also witnessed a myriad of perspectives from Indian citizens engaging, supporting as well as raising their concerns through Retweets and Replies to the politicians. Here are some of the top RTs from the Most Mentioned Indian Politicians
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Twitter Handles & Top RTs
Narendra Modi@narendramodi
भ्रष्टाचार के ख़िलाफ़ लड़ाई में जुड़ने के लिए नीतीश कुमार जी को बहुत-बहुत बधाई।
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 26, 2017
सवा सौ करोड़ नागरिक ईमानदारी का स्वागत और समर्थन कर रहे हैं
Arvind Kejriwal @arvindkejriwal
21, 20172G scam is one of the biggest scams. It rocked the country n was one of the reasons for UPA’s downfall. Today everyone goes scot free. Did CBI mess up the case? Intentionally? People need answers
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal)
2G scam is one of the biggest scams. It rocked the country n was one of the reasons for UPA’s downfall. Today everyone goes scot free. Did CBI mess up the case? Intentionally? People need answers
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) December 21, 2017
Yogi Adityanath @myogiadityanath
भारतीय क्रिकेटर श्री @GautamGambhir पर देश को गर्व है। pic.twitter.com/imKgvi7BjO
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) April 28, 2017
Amit Shah @amitshah
Yamraj
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) December 7, 2017
Maut Ka Saudagar
Ravan
Gandi Nali Ka Keeda
Monkey
Rabies Victim
Virus
Bhasmasur
Gangu Teli
Goon
These are some words or phrases Congress has used for PM @narendramodi in the past. Not much has changed. We wish them well. We will continue to serve 125 crore Indians.
Rahul Gandhi @officeofRG
Modi ji quick; looks like President Trump needs another hug pic.twitter.com/B4001yw5rg
— Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) October 15, 2017
Manohar Lal Khattar @mlkhattar
The sex ratio at birth has increased to 938, from the earlier 850. Our Govt. will achieve the sex ratio target of 950 by this year.
— Manohar Lal (@mlkhattar) March 15, 2017
Arun Jaitley @arunjaitley
The difference between the UPA and NDA-“The ease of doing corruption has been replaced by the ease of doing business"
— Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) November 1, 2017
Subramanian Swamy @Swamy39
For those e.g Rajdeep who want hospital on Ramjanmabhoomi I suggest a mental hospital 10 kms across Saryu River with a window to see temple
— Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) For those e.g Rajdeep who want hospital on Ramjanmabhoomi I suggest a mental hospital 10 kms across Saryu River with a window to see temple
Rajnath Singh @rajnathsingh
The generosity of Shri @akshaykumar is highly commendable. This gesture will inspire others to come forward & help the families of martyrs
— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) March 16, 2017
Suresh Prabhu @sureshpprabhu
Thanks to all 13 Lacs+ rail family for their support,love,goodwill.I will always cherish these memories with me.Wishing u all a great life
— Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) September 3, 2017
These were some of the top Twitter 2017 statistics.
Following the #YearOnTwitter review for 2017, Twitter is now bringing together thought leaders to share their perspectives in a three-part BlueRoom show - #ThisHappened. The show will highlight significant moments in the past year in Entertainment, Sports and a special segment on Women’s movements in India.
Let’s take time to reflect this year,
— Twitter India (@TwitterIndia) December 28, 2017
Some good memories, some bitter, Now that 2018 is extremely near...
Find out more tomorrow on Twitter! #ThisHappened pic.twitter.com/RKwcdihUab
#ThisHappened in Entertainment
On 29th December, film critic Anupama Chopra (@anupamachopra) will take viewers on a journey to discuss the most talked about Entertainment moments, celebrities and films in 2017 and expectations for 2018. Accompanying her will be singer Armaan Malik (@ArmaanMalik22), who has secured his spot on the list of Most Talked About Male Bollywood Celebrities and Most Talked About Gen-Next Bollywood Celebrities this year. Film buffs, keep a lookout for the show on Anupama’s Twitter handle @anupamachopraon Friday at 12 noon.
Just a few more days till another surprise for you guys! #NotASong #NotMyMerch so try guessing ???
— ARMAAN MALIK (@ArmaanMalik22) December 27, 2017
#ThisHappened for Women
Internet sensation Anisha Dixit aka Rickshawali (@Rickshawali) will explore the rise in women movements as well as celebrate womanhood in the digital age. Joining her on the show is popular comedian Aditi Mittal (@awryaditi), who has her own point of view on new-age feminism, women empowerment and “intersectionality”. Stay tuned to the vibrant discussion which will be Tweeted from Anisha’s Twitter account @Rickshawali this Saturday, 30th December, 12PM.
#ThisHappened in Sports
Star Sports anchor Jatin Sapru (@jatinsapru) will share his take on the sports scene in 2017, including the key moments in sports for India, the rise of sports personalities beyond cricket, and his wishes for 2018 on New Year’s Eve. Count down the year with Jatin on Twitter this Sunday, 31st December, 12PM.
Commenting on the initiative, Keya Madhvani, Head of Music & Lifestyle Partnerships, Twitter India, said: “As people gear up to ring in the new year with new resolutions, it is important to reflect on 2017 to not only gain perspective on what happened, but to also understand where we’re headed. Twitter is the best and the fastest place to find out what’s happening in your world and the roundup on #ThisHappened aims to spark more meaningful conversations around what happened across different aspects of society.”
The article is a part of our Social Throwback series that recaps the year that was for the industry.