#ThisHappened: 2019’s Biggest Moments in India on Twitter

Twitter #ThisHappened includes key highlights of the happenings on the platform as a year-end reflection.

Twitter is unique as a global public conversation platform that shows people what’s happening right now and lets them talk about it with anyone around the world. From breaking news and entertainment to sports, politics, and everyday interests, Twitter is where people come to see what’s happening and join in conversations on trending topics. Multiply that by hundreds of millions of people globally and what you get is an amazing, diverse public view of the world - from funny personal moments to serious global events, from sensible tips to zany reactions, from pop culture to mass movements, and everything in between. Enter - Twitter #ThisHappened.

That’s why Twitter’s end-of-year reflection is fascinating. It’s interesting to see what Indians collectively talked about - from breaking news, entertainment and sports to politics, social causes and so much more. Right from the #loksabhaelections2019 to #chandrayaan2 and #cwc19, this year, Twitter in India was abuzz with conversation and participation.

One of the most exciting and momentous events for India this year was ISRO’s #chandrayaan2 mission. The event represented a technological leap and highlighted India’s contribution to space exploration, as the world took to Twitter to respond to every development. Not before long, #chandrayaan2 had developed into a phenomenon of sorts, and NASA as well as people on Twitter applauded ISRO’s work with this iconic Tweet.

As 2019 draws to a close, here are some of the most interesting and talked about topics that emerged on Twitter.

Twitter #ThisHappened: Golden Tweet of 2019

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s (@narendramodi) Tweet celebrating BJP’s re-election victory in #loksabhaelections2019 was the most Retweeted and Liked Tweet of the year, making it the Golden Tweet in India.

Here is the most Retweeted Tweet in Sports in India

In sports, Vikat Kohli (@imVkohli) wished M.S Dhoni (@msdhoni) on his birthday, which became the most Retweeted Tweet in the world of sports. This heartfelt Tweet by Kohli on Mahi’s birthday with a picture of the duo together made for an epic moment for Indian cricket fans.

Here is the Most Retweeted Tweet in Entertainment in India

The Tamil entertainment industry continued to rule hearts as well as the Twitter charts. Vijay’s (@actorvijay) Tweet sharing the poster of his film #bigil became the Tweet to receive the most Retweets in the entertainment sector, as well as became the Tweet to achieve the most Retweets with comments overall, indicating South-entertainment fans’ active engagement on the platform to discuss their favourite movies and stars.

#ThisHappened: Top 10 most Tweeted about Hashtags in 2019 in India

Hashtags are what tie ideas together around a topic of conversation. They take conversations across timelines, increase engagement and discoverability of a topic. In 2019, these were the most Tweeted about Hashtags.

*Methodology: Ranked by number of unique authors discussing on Twitter from Jan 1 to Nov 15, 2019.

• #loksabhaelections2019:  The world’s largest democracy voted to determine its political future this year, and Indians took to Twitter to exchange their thoughts, resulting in #loksabhaelections2019 at the top of the list of most Tweeted about Hashtags.

• #chandrayaan2: ISRO’s ground-breaking mission to land the world’s first robotic rover on the moon’s south pole was followed closely, not only by millions of Indians but people all across the world. A Tweet from NASA (@NASA) commending ISRO became one of the top ten most Retweeted Tweets this year by Indians on the service.

• #cwc19: Cricket fans had a busy summer of cricket in 2019 with the Cricket World Cup. Despite India losing to New Zealand in the semi-finals, Indian cricket fans owned Twitter, Tweeting about winning moments, shocking upsets, classic catches, and who can forget all those memes, making #cwc19 the third most Tweeted about hashtag this year.

• #pulwama: The news of the death of 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in an attack on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway in Pulwama district, resulted in Indians taking to Twitter to Tweet their reactions.

• #article370: In August 2019, the Minister of Home Affairs revoked Article 370 of the Indian Constitution that gave special status to Jammu & Kashmir, raising opposition and support on Twitter.

• #bigil: Like every year, the Tamil and Telugu entertainment industries dominated entertainment conversations on Twitter. Fans of superstar Vijay (@actorvijay) used the service to discuss and celebrate every update about the much-awaited Diwali blocker buster #bigil.

• #diwali: Like every year, this year the festival of lights sparked joy as the five days of celebration lit up people’s timelines. People came to Twitter to talk about their celebrations, wish loved ones and Tweet about how and why Deepavali was special to them.

• #avengersendgame: Like much of the world, Indians took to Twitter to discuss fan-theories and what to expect in the anticipated finale of the franchise, making #avengersendgame one of the most Tweeted about hashtags this year.

• #ayodhyaverdict: The Ayodhya dispute has been a political, historical, and socio-religious milestone in India. As the final judgement in the Ayodhya dispute was declared by the Supreme Court of India, people Tweeted their reactions.

• #eidmubarak: Audiences on Twitter celebrate every festival with equal cheer and joy. The tenth most Tweeted about hashtag this year was the festival of Eid, as people Tweeted and wished each other prosperity and goodwill.

Also Read: #HappyTweets: Twitter launches positivity campaign ft Anushka Sharma

#ThisHappened: Top Most Mentioned Accounts:

The following Twitter accounts were the most mentioned on Twitter in the year 2019, across topics like entertainment, politics, and sports.

*Methodology: Most mentioned accounts are ranked by number of unique authors discussing on Twitter from Jan 1 to Nov 15, 2019.

•  Entertainment

• Sports

•  Politics

And finally, Twitter is nothing if not fun - and what says fun more than expressing oneself through emojis? Below is the list of Most Tweeted emojis on Twitter in India this year.