Coronavirus lockdown impact: Social elites wake up to TikTok

Mumbai: In an unintended consequence of the lockdown courtesy Covid-19, India’s social media elite has taken to TikTok to combat boredom and anxiety. Until recently, this section of online users frowned upon TikTok’s content and labelled it “cringe-worthy” even as users from tier-II and -III cities gained rewards and recognition through the platform, turning India into the biggest market for the Chinese video-sharing social network.

Advertising executives tracking TikTok note something unprecedented about the current spike in user downloads after the entire country went into lockdown. It is the trend of “India 1” suddenly embracing ByteDance’s flagship product with open arms. “India 1 is softening towards TikTok, accepting its idiosyncrasies instead of labelling it cringe-worthy,” says Ishtaarth Dalmia, an anthropologist and AVP strategy at digital agency Webchutney. One of the reasons TikTok has been able to catch on with India’s social media elite is due to a surge in its visibility on other popular platforms.