From high-profile deaths and natural calamities, to discussions about celebrity marriages, hashtags have become an indispensible social media tool for users to engage in mass conversations online. The use of hashtags is nothing new. The symbol itself came into existence in 14th century. However, it wasn’t termed as hashtag until it became popular on social media platforms. Its usage as a way of finding posts of a particular topic began in 2007. From there, hashtags have come a long way to becoming the most popular online tool that it is today.
Orissa POST takes a look at the hashtags that dominated social media feeds in 2018.
#Section377
In a landmark judgment for the LGBT community in the country, the Supreme Court lifted a colonial-era ban on gay sex in its September 6 verdict. A five-judge constitutional bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra had reserved its verdict on July 17 after hearing various stakeholders for four days, including gay rights activists. Besides the CJI, the bench also comprised justices R F Nariman, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud and Indu Malhotra. Underlining the supremacy of “constitutional morality” over “societal morality”, the Supreme Court had scrapped a 158-year-old British-era law that banned same-sex relations between consenting adults in private and punished them with jail terms for life or up to ten years. After this verdict, all social media platforms were sent into frenzy as the LGBT community and general public hailed the watershed moment in the nation’s advancement towards modern ethos.
#WinkingGirl (Priya Prakash Varrier)
The name Priya Prakash Varrier would be known to any youngster even with a minute social meadia presence in 2018. During its peak, this particular hashtag could be seen in the feed of almost anyone with a social account. The girl became an overnight sensation after a clip of her Malayalam movie Oru Adaar Love was uploaded on YouTube. The young actress was seen winking her eyes in the video. This particular gesture prompted the creation of several memes and GIFs. The response for #WinkingGirl was of gargantuan proportions which enabled Varrier to pip Sunny Leone to become Google’s most searched Indian actress this year. She even managed to pip Instagram owner Mark Zuckerberg in his own arena by garnering more followers than him even before the release of her first film.
#KikiChallenge
The Kiki dance challenge was based on Canadian hip-hop superstar Drake’s hit song ‘In My Feelings’ from his latest album Scorpion. The viral trend shows participants coming out of a moving car, leaving the door open and then dance to the song beside their slow-moving vehicle as it cruises down the street. Many people were seen uploading videos with the hashtag #kikichallenge. However, many accidents and injuries were reported from around the world due to this endeavour. Many denizens of the city had undertaken the challenge which prompted Odisha Police to share a message of caution to discourage such challenges.
#JusticeForAsifa
The rape of a minor girl Asifa, a resident of Kathua area in Jammu and Kashmir, and her subsequent disappearance and death created widespread protests and tension across the nation. After going missing for a week, her body was found in the forests near Rasana, Hiranagar January 17. According to police, she had been abducted and raped by an SPO Deepak Khajuria, who was a part of the team sent out to find her when she was missing. The shocking scenario took an unfortunate turn when many people attempted to defend the culprits on the lines of religion. Reacting to this, many celebrities including film stars took to social media to vent their anger at the heinous crime and lackadaisical attitude of the authorities. A social media and outdoor campaign under the banner of #JusticeForAsifa lead the way in the demand for justice in this regard. Many citizens were seen holding placards with the following message: I am Hindustan. I am Ashamed. #JusticeForOurChild #JusticeForAasifa. Expressing their deep sorrow over the Kathua case, celebrities like Kalki Koechlin, Huma Quresh and Swara Bhaskar among others pleaded to bring the culprits to justice.
#Metoo
The most popular hashtag of 2017 continued to trend and shape the destiny of many in the following year. The movement which was initiated last year in Hollywood after more than 80 women accused producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual abuse. The Me Too movement gained traction in India after actress Tanushree Dutta accused Nana Patekar of sexual harassment. This prompted multiple women working in news media, Indian films and even the central government to speak out and allege sexual harassment against a number of influential men. Celebrities such as director Sajid Khan, Vikas Bahl, actor Alok Nath, singer and music director Anu malik, Kailash Kher and union minister MJ Akbar faced such allegations of sexual misconduct. Many people including film personalities praised the victims for coming out and raising the issue while many termed it as a publicity stunt for gaining attention. Be that as it may, few hashtags were typed more than #MeToo.
#Deepveer and #Nickpriyanka
Celebrity marriages seem to gain a lot of media attention over the years. 2018 was a busy year in this regard as multiple celebrities tied the knot. Two of the most talked about marriages of the year were that of Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh; Priyanka Chopra and Nock Jonas.
On November 14-15, Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh sealed the deal in a private ceremony in Italy. After a couple of days, the couple shared their marriage clicks which sent social media users into frenzy. This was followed by lavish wedding reception parties in Bengaluru and Mumbai. Even as Deepika and Ranveer’s wedding reception parties continued, Priyanka Chopra tied the knot with American singer Nick Jonas in Jodhpur December 1 and 2, in yet another grand wedding spread over a week. Priyanka and Nick hosted their reception parties in Delhi December 4 and in Mumbai December 19 and 20.
The couple is yet to host another reception party in Los Angeles. By the time Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas could move on to their wedding reception parties, Mukesh and Nita Ambani’s daughter Isha Ambani married Ajay and Swati Piramal’s son Anand Piramal’s. The pre-wedding festivities took off in Udaipur December 8 and 9. The two-day events in Udaipur culminated with a performance by American pop sensation Beyonce. And soon after December 12, Isha and Anand tied the knot at Antilia in Mumbai, an event that was followed by three reception parties.
