Silent K-Wave: What India's Search Data Reveals?

The death of three sisters, who died by suicide after jumping from the ninth floor of an apartment in Ghaziabad, has turned attention toward a different, more troubling dimension of cultural immersion. One that raises questions about emotional attachment, especially among young minds still learning to distinguish between reality and fantasy.

To understand that depth, India Today’s Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) team examined Google trends data to track how Korean culture has grown, evolved, and quietly woven itself into the daily habits and public discourse of India.

Data shows a sharp spike in searches for the keyword “Korean” between 2020 and 2022, coinciding with the Covid pandemic, as audiences increasingly immersed themselves in Korean dramas. Search interest surged alongside the popularity of shows such as Crash Landing on You, Squid Game, and It’s Okay to Not Be Okay, all of which recorded substantial search interest during this period.

Not just K-dramas, Korean slang gained ground in India during the same period with terms like “Oppa” and “Saranghae” recording the highest spikes. Google Trends data reviewed by India Today shows how elements of Korean lifestyle, from skincare and food to fashion, rapidly moved into the mainstream for Indian audiences in the post-Covid phase.

The fascination with Korea, however, extends far beyond television for many. It spills into fantasies of Korean skin, flawless, luminous, almost unreal, shaped by screens, filters and meticulously choreographed routines that blur the line between achievable care and curated perfection.

K-CULTURE IN INDIA

Before 2020, interest in Korean culture in India was clearly growing but exploratory. Searches climbed steadily, driven by curiosity and occasional viral moments. Covid changed the nature of that interest.

The Covid period can be called a watershed moment for Indians immersing themselves in Korean culture.

What was once limited, if not contained to specific regions such as the North-East and to urban millennials, has now become what many describe as a “craze” or “Korean fever”, driven in part by the global popularity of K-pop idols such as BTS, BLACKPINK, and EXO, whose massive fan bases have helped propel Korean culture deep into Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha social media spaces. So much so that some proudly flex themselves as members of the ‘BTS Army’.

Analysis shows that collective terms such as Korean drama, Korean films, K-pop and other such categories recorded a sharp spike during the Covid-19 period, particularly during lockdowns. Post-pandemic, interest in these specific categories declined from their peak but did not return to pre-Covid levels, instead following a gradual downward trajectory.
In contrast, searches for the broader keyword 'Korean' have remained largely sustained at, or close to, their Covid-era interest levels..

KOREAN DRAMAS - A MUST TO BELONG TO K-CULTURE

Korean dramas found their Indian audience in the mid-2000s, when Doordarshan broadcast Hindi-dubbed versions of Jewel in the Palace (aired as Ghar Ka Chirag) and Emperor of the Sea.

Research shows that during the lockdowns, Korean content, especially dramas, fit neatly into long and uncertain days, with search data reflecting a sharp rise in interest. This is where Korean storytelling stopped being something people checked out and became something people lived with.

Korean dramas, with their episodic formats, long emotional arcs, and focus on relationships, healing, and everyday struggles, are designed for sustained immersion and habit formation.

WITH CULTURE COMES LANGUAGE

From around 2020, Indian teenagers began casually adopting Korean words popularised by K dramas and K-pop into chats, captions, and reels. As usage grew, searches followed. What stands out is that interest is centred on words linked to relationships and emotions rather than grammar or sentence structure.

Terms like “Oppa” and “Saranghae” recorded the highest spikes, suggesting they moved beyond fan communities into everyday digital slang, especially in playful or romantic contexts. Words such as “Unnie” and “Maknae” remained more niche, largely circulating within dedicated K-pop fandoms.

After peaking between 2021 and 2022, search volumes declined. Most probably not because usage disappeared, but because these words became familiar enough that people no longer needed to look them up.

GAMES: FROM THE MOST HORRIFIC TO THE ROMANTIC ONES

While Korean games are not among the most widely searched categories, interest in Korean games has shown a relatively consistent trajectory over time. Their appeal lies less in scale and more in function: they offer escape from reality.

From horror titles and darker psychological narratives to romantic simulations that allow players to choose a boyfriend or girlfriend, chat, share thoughts, and gradually blur the line between play and lived experience, these games create immersive emotional worlds.

Downloads in millions illustrate how intimacy, fantasy, and sustained emotional engagement have become central to this genre.

In India, many live in a Korean cultural universe: shopping at Korean stores, consuming Korean content, and aspiring toward ideals such as fair, flawless skin, even as harsher realities remain and the role of filters and cosmetic interventions is often overlooked.

This influence extends to food and commerce as well. Buying tofu at a store, ordering ramyeon, or choosing from menus listing kimchi, tteokbokki, bibimbap, or Korean fried chicken has become routine.

The commercial pull is such that even large food outlets and multinational brands now offer tweaked versions: Korean corn and jalapeo garlic bread to Korean chicken burst pizza at Dominos, Korean spicy paneer burgers at McDonald's etc underscores how deeply Korean culture has been packaged, adapted, and monetised for Indian consumption.

The data we fetched shows that Korean culture is no longer niche in India: it is sustained, evolving, and embedded. For millions, K-culture offers comfort, escape, and aspiration. The challenge lies in recognising when that escape quietly starts replacing reality.