BackTwitter top trends, hashtags and popular moments of 2015
Shah Rukh Khan's tweet containing a selfie with One Direction former member, Zayn Malik is the Golden Tweet for India in 2015
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As the year ends, microblogging site Twitter has unveiled the hashtag #YearOnTwitter, where one can see how 2015 unfolded across the world via tweets.
Several hashtags created for certain public events catapulted these events into global movements, with some hashtags trending all over the world and acquiring a life of their own. For instance, #JeSuisCharlie and #PrayforParis created after the Charlie Hebdo and Paris attacks, respectively, allowed people all over the world to express their sorrow. #LoveWins, another popular hashtag that sprang up after the US Supreme Court guaranteed the rights of same-sex couples to marry, gave Americans a chance to celebrate the momentous decision.
India’s Golden Tweet
The Golden Tweet for India in 2015 is from Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk), who Tweeted a selfie with British boy band One Direction’s former member Zayn Malik (@zaynmalik) at the Asian Awards in London in April 2015. It took Twitter by storm, garnering over 140,000 retweets and nearly 18.3 million views globally, as fans of both artists were thrilled to see the two together in a rare selfie moment.
Most influential moments on Twitter from India
#ChennaiRains: Twitter was used constructively as a platform to provide reports, disseminate critical information and coordinate local relief efforts during the record-breaking Chennai floods from 1-4 December. Local citizens sent over 1.4 million tweets using #ChennaiRains, #ChennaiFloods and #ChennaiRainsHelp hashtags to crowdsource assistance and help each other through this natural disaster.
#India’s 69th Independence Day: The 69th year of Independence for India was marked on Twitter with three key moments. India got its first Independence Day flag emoji with #India, the Taj Mahal joined Twitter as one of the first historic Indian monuments to join Twitter, and there was an inspirational #SaluteSelfie campaign that recorded over 100,000 tweets to show gratitude for the Armed Forces.
#INDvsPAK (First match of #CWC15 on 15 February): India beating Pakistan in the first match of the Cricket World Cup in 2015 was the most viewed TV and sports event of the year and drew a record-breaking 118.3 million impressions on Twitter, including the magical #OnlyOnTwitter moment when Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) tweeted after the win.
#DelhiElections (Delhi assembly elections on 10 February): Twitter played a powerful role during the Delhi assembly elections held in February 2015 when hashtags #DelhiElections and #DelhiVotes became points of convergence of all conversations on the elections. Twitter provided the perfect window to this political moment that saw Aam Aadmi Party (@AAP) winning a majority of the votes. There were over 10.8 million election-related Tweets during the 30-day campaign period.
Most influential moments on Twitter from the world
#ParisAttacks: As the horrific attacks in Paris unfolded in November, the world united to support people in the City of Light using the hashtag #PrayForParis. Just 10 months earlier, terrorists had attacked the Paris offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. After that incident, citizens rallied around the phrase "Je Suis Charlie" to show their support and sorrow for the victims.
#MarriageEquality: People used Twitter this year to celebrate the national legalization of same-sex marriage, notably in the US and in Ireland. The #HomeToVote hashtag became hugely popular when Irish citizen expats shared their experiences returning home to vote, and #LoveWins celebrated the Supreme Court’s decision to legalize gay marriage in the US on 26 June.
#RefugeesWelcome: As thousands of refugees from the Middle East and Africa sought asylum in Europe, human rights activists and other citizens around the world chimed in with the hashtag #RefugeesWelcome.
#PlutoFlyby: Twitter did not exist when @NasaNewHorizons left Earth in 2006, but it’s where the whole world came to marvel over the historic #PlutoFlyby. Buzz around the spacecraft, which came within 7,750 miles of Pluto’s surface, and the close-up images it captured, generated more than 1 million Tweets on 14 July.
Popular hashtag trends in India
#IPL: The biggest T20 cricket league in the world made a full season return to India after being partially played in the Middle East last year and saw cricket fans tweeting enthusiastically about the league with over 9 million #IPL Tweets this season.
#BiharResults: One of the largest states of India went to polls this October-November, and Twitter provided front-row access to the unfolding conversations. #BiharElections got the chatter going about breaking news, candidates sparring over agendas, and wooing the public. #BiharResults trended on polling day with over 260,000 Tweets.
#SelfieWithDaughter: This Modi-led campaign started in the state of Haryana in July 2015 to promote the rights of the girl child and started trending within hours as fathers clicked selfies with their daughters to participate in the initiative with over 375,000#SelfieWithDaughter Tweets.
#DDLJ20Years: The iconic Bollywood love story Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge turned 20 this October and celebrated its birthday on Twitter with fans and celebrities reminiscing their favourite DDLJ dialogues, scenes, songs, and photos. Twitter presented a wonderful reflection to all the excitement with over 140,000 #DDLJ20Years Tweets.
Firsts on Twitter
Make In India: The first non-US brand to create its own Twitter emoji
In November, @MakeInIndia, one of the largest economic development initiatives run by the Indian government, became the first non-US brand to create its own Twitter emoji for a worldwide audience.
Twitter cricket timelines for #CWC15 and #IPL: Twitter created special cricket timelines for #CWC15 and #IPL2015 as a one-stop shop for cricket tweets, commentary, expert analysis, plus photos and videos from the world’s biggest cricketing events.
Indian airline and telco launch Tweet-powered customer service: Jet Airways and Reliance Communications became the first airline and telecom company to launch a tweet-based customer service. #JetInstant is a first-of-its-kind Twitter-based innovation that lets you check the lowest fare or view your flight status with just a single Tweet. #SmartCare is a Twitter-based customer service that allows 120 million Reliance users to access and manage their mobile phone accounts on Twitter. It provides facilities like paying bills, recharging online, viewing and buying the best deals, tracking usage and checking balance.
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