Google’s Year in Search reveals what Indians searched for in 2025

It is that time of year where Google provides a glimpse into our browser histories. The company has dropped its annual report for India, and it’s basically a list of everything us Indians loved and discovered this year. Unsurprisingly, cricket dominated the conversation. But it’s far from being the only obsession. Let’s dive in.

The things we actually searched for

Let’s start with the obvious. The top trending people lists were not filled with Bollywood stars but rather young cricketers like Vaibhav Suryavanshi, the teenage sensation who made waves in domestic leagues, and Priyansh Arya. Even the overall trends list was topped by the IPL, which surprises absolutely no one living here.

Cinema held its ground, though. Saiyaara took the top spot for movies, followed closely by Kantara: A Legend Chapter-1, the prequel to the folkloric thriller that took everyone by surprise a few years back. Action flicks like War 2 and Coolie were frantically searched for, too.

On the news front, the massive Maha Kumbh Mela–a major Hindu pilgrimage held every 12 years in Prayagraj–was a primary focus for travellers and news junkies alike. Moreover, a close watch was kept on the Bihar and Delhi election results by voters across the country.

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Things get funnier in the “Meaning” category. While serious terms popped up, “Pookie” – internet slang for something cute or a loved one–was right up there. So was “5201314,” which is actually a Chinese number-pun meaning “I love you for a lifetime.”

Meanwhile, home cooks were busy. Thekua, a sweet wheat-based snack from Bihar, and Modak, the sweet dumplings loved by Lord Ganesha, were the recipes of choice.

How Google itself evolved

The way we actually find all of the stuff mentioned above is shifting. This year saw the release of Gemini 3. It rolled out to handle the really hard questions that usually stump older bots. We also saw the launch of “Nano Banana Pro.” It’s that new image generation model that you generate images so real that most people can’t tell them apart from the real.

This launched alongside a Virtual Apparel Try-On feature. You upload a photo, and the AI figures out how a dress drapes on you. Visual search got smarter, too. Lens in AI Mode is now used to analyse relationships between objects in a photo rather than just identifying a lamp.