Conducted by Red Lab, the specialist consumer insights think tank at one of India’s leading independent ad agencies- Rediffusion, has come up with its annual survey- ‘Hits of the Year’ wherein India’s World Cup cricket victory, PM Modi, lavish Ambani wedding, Ram Mandir’s opening in Ayodhya, Quick-commerce, Ratan Tata and D. Gukesh have topped the charts.
Curated by highly trained specialists after extensive research, the hits as per the survey can be anything ranging from being an event, a personality, a trend, a technology, or just a popular word or anything that found fame and gained mass acceptance.
To go about this year’s survey, the Red Lab team at Rediffusion this year, much like in 2023, sat down to list all the things that ‘drove’ India, or inspired India, in 2024, scanned all headline making news/newsmakers, creating a long list of 300 possible Hits.
This long list was then reviewed by an expert panel consisting of thought leaders, culture czars and business captains from different domains, who distilled this list down to 50 Hits.
Finally, this shortlist was put to a popular poll amongst 2317 respondents across India (all 18-45 years, M– 53%, F– 47%) in end November-early December giving us the Top 20.
In proving that India not only mothers, but fathers the game as well, cricket remains on top of the stories for Indians in 2024, with the World Cup victory being the biggest delight of the year gone by.
The big cricket victory is closely followed by the continued wave of Modiji-fandom, especially his rise as a global leader of stature – rubbing shoulders with outgoing US President Joe Biden, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and French President Emmanuel Macron – to his easy personal equations with Presidents Putin and Zelensky on one side and Donald Trump on the other.
In any listing of Hits for 2024, the talk-of-the-town and buzz of the globe, the Ambani Wedding could not be far behind.
Top 20 Big Hits as per Rediffusion’s Red Lab’s ‘Hits Of The Year’:
- Reigning in Blue: India lifts the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup with a thrilling win. (68.3%)
- Narendra Modi, Our Global Leader: Modi’s leadership strengthens India’s global influence. (65.9%)
- The Great Indian Ambani Wedding: The $600M wedding of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant. (65.9%)
- Ram Mandir- A Dream Realized: The consecration of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya marks history. (61.0%)
- The 10-Minute Delivery Revolution: Blinkit and Zepto redefine instant convenience. (60.5%)
- The Man, The Icon, The Titan: Ratan Tata’s passing marks the end of an iconic era. (57.8%)
- The New King in The Kingdom of Chess – D.Gukesh just made it to the list with his year-end crowning as World Champ. (56.7%)
- Rishabh Pant: The Comeback King of Indian cricket who also this year became the highest paid IPL star. (55.6%)
- The evolution of the Supreme Court into ‘the People’s Court’ credited to CJ DY Chandrachud. (53.8%)
- India eyes sustainability: India’s leaning strong focus on EVs, aligning with its commitment to becoming NetZero by 2070. (53.5%)
- Dil-Jeeting Hearts Worldwide: Diljit Dosanjh takes Punjabi music global, headlining Coachella and more. (53.2%)
- India’s Golden Boy: Neeraj Chopra wins silver at Paris Olympics, solidifying his legacy. (53%)
- The SKY-High Sensation: Suryakumar Yadav’s fearless batting clinches India’s T20 World Cup. (45.9%)
- Air India & Vistara: The merger of Air India and Vistara marks a landmark consolidation for the Indian Aviation sector. (43.8%)
- India’s Olympic Odyssey: India achieves its best-ever Olympic and Paralympic medal haul. (42.7%)
- 2024 General Elections: BJP forms a coalition government in a cliff-hanger, after record voter turnout. (41.9%)
- The Trump Card of America: Donald Trump wins a second presidential term, making waves in India too. (40.1%)
- The Devi of Armless Archery: Sheetal Devi wins Paralympics bronze medal in archery. (40%)
- Boom Boom Bumrah!: Jasprit Bumrah leads India’s cricket pace attack with precision and grit. (36.6%)
- Ladki Bahin: Women’s empowerment dominates Maharashtra’s elections and delivers a mammoth pro-BJP verdict. (34.1%)
Commenting on the same, Dr. Sandeep Goyalv, Chairman, Rediffusion, said, “2024 has been a year of many victories – in cricket, in chess and at the Olympics. The Hits also came from PM Modi, the Ambanis, Ratan Tata, CJ Chandrachud, singer Diljit Dosanjh and cricketers Pant, Sky and Bumrah. Many of them find a place in the ‘Hits of the Year’ 2024 because they made the nation proud.”
“The ‘20 Big Hits of 2024’ is more than a snapshot; it’s a narrative of progress and pride, urging us to reflect and celebrate as we look ahead to a brighter 2025”, added Maninder Singh Randhawa, Chief of Strategy, Rediffusion.
Concludingly, Carol Goyal, Executive Director, Rediffusion, also mentioned, “The Hits of the Year is a big research project for us at Rediffusion. We continue to build on it, year-on-year, with sharper research and more interesting interpretations.”
