Today we’re highlighting some of the top trends that happened on Reels this year in India. Our ‘Reels in Review’ report shows the growing interest people have in cricketers like Surya Kumar Yadav and musicians like Shubh. It also captures the excitement that people have for films like ‘Bhediya’ and upcoming ones like ‘Pathaan,’ in addition to songs like ‘Kesariya’ and ‘Kacha Badam’. 

Since launching in 2020, Reels has changed the way people consume and create content on Instagram and Facebook. Our report  highlights the topics, trends and moments that entertained India in 2022, and those that are keeping us excited for the upcoming year.

Popular and Growing Interests on Reels

Virat Kohli continues to be one of the most popular hashtags used on reels, but there is also a growing interest in Surya Kumar Yadav. Musician Shubh caught the attention of reel-ers too, as he has been one of the most growing hashtags compared to 2021 as well.

Films and series content continued to make imprints on pop culture, as people shared their interest in ‘Bhediya’, ‘Family Guy’, ‘Ek Villain Returns’, ‘Naagin 6’, ‘Vikram’, ‘Mismatched Season 2’ and the upcoming ‘Pathaan’.

Sports have been a big and growing area of interest, with the recently concluded ICC Men’s cricket #T20WorldCup and #QatarWorldCup. More than 1 million reels on Instagram related to the ICC T20 World Cup were created in India. 

Music on Reels

Music, both from our music library and original audio, have been driving trends on reels across Instagram and Facebook. 15 of the top 20 most-used songs on Instagram reels globally came from Indian artists.

Some of the top songs that are popular across reels on both Instagram and Facebook for all age groups are ‘Srivalli’ by Javed Ali and ‘Baarish Main Tum’ by Neha Kakkar. ‘Kesariya’ by Pritam, Arijit Singh and Amitabh Bhattacharya, ‘Gypsy’ by G.D. Kaur, the KGF 2 theme song and ‘Jhoom’ by Ali Zafar were also among the most popular. Retro music like ‘Tumsa Koi Pyaara’ and original audio like ‘Kacha Badam’ also made  the list. 

AR Effects On Reels

While sharing their interests and using music, people extensively and interestingly used augmented reality (AR) effects in their  reels. Some of the top AR effects used were 𝕰𝖓𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖊✨😍, 𝙰𝚕𝟷 𝚜𝚘𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚗 and Smoke Flare VR.

Here’s the complete list of some of the top interests, music, effects and stickers on reels in 2022:

Popular and Growing Interests

• Personalities – Surya Kumar Yadav,  Shubh 
• Films and Series –  ‘Bhediya’, ‘Family Guy’, ‘Naagin 6’, ‘Vikram’, ‘Mismatched Season 2’, ‘Pathaan’
• Sports –  T20 World Cup, Qatar World Cup 

ICC T20 World Cup 

• More than 1 million reels on Instagram related to the ICC T20 World Cup were created in India
• There were more than  2 billion  engagement (likes, comments and shares) on Instagram reels created in India 
• Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya were the top three most mentioned Indian cricketers on reels in India 

Music 

• ‘Srivalli’ by Javed Ali
• ‘Baarish Main Tum’ by Neha Kakkar
• ‘Kesariya’ by Pritam, Arijit Singh and Amitabh Bhattacharya
• ‘Gypsy’ by G.D. Kaur 
• KGF 2 theme (Remake) by Kamal Eleven

AR 

Add Yours sticker on Stories (last 90 days)

• Current song in your mind ? Dnt skip ❤
• Don’t cheat!! Show your lockscreen!
• Mirror pics ONLY
• Write your full name with your mother’s surname
• Last sky pic\nDon’t cheat

Follow #2022ReelsInReview for more conversations about these trends.