India among top 10 markets gripped by Oscar 2016 fever: Google

Google has announced that 2016 began with a search trends interest for the 88th Academy Awards, more commonly referred to as the Oscars. Compared to 2015, this year has seen an unprecedented 70% Y-O-Y growth in queries for the Oscars. January 2016 saw a 2X spike in searches in comparison to December 2015. As high as 50% of all Oscar searches worldwide have originated from the USA. Markets that make up to the next 30% of the search share include UK, Canada, Australia and Spain. India contributes to about 2% of the global searches for the Oscars and still makes it to the top 10 markets for Oscar searches. In 2016, searches around the Oscars are trending to be the top query worldwide in the Art & Entertainment category. The same trend is being seen in India as well. All varieties of queries are being typed by the users - around the awards, award dates and nominations. Here’s a closer look at the search trends reflecting the top searches for Oscars 2016 from India. Best Picture - Among the nominees for ‘Best Picture’ at this year’s Academy Awards it is The Revenant that unsurprisingly claims top spot followed by Mad Max: Fury Road. The top searched nominees in this category are: The Revenant, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, Room, Bridge of Spies, Spotlight and The Big Short. Best Actor - For all the Indian fans, Leonardo DiCaprio emerged as the most popular nominee in the race for Best Actor. Matt Damon (The Martian) follows as the second most searched contender. Other nominees such as Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs), Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl) and Bryan Cranston (Trumbo) trail behind the first two luminaries. Incidentally DiCaprio also emerges at the most searched Best Actor nominee across the US. Best Actress – Among the Best Actress nominees, Cate Blanchett (Carol) is the most-searched nominee followed by Jennifer Lawrence (Joy), Brie Larson (Room), Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn) and Charlotte Rampling (45 Years). In the US, the two best searched nominees in this category are Cate Blanchett and Jennifer Lawrence Best Director – The top directors at the 88th Academy Awards being searched for include: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (The Revenant), Adam McKay (The Big Short), George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road); Lenny Abrhamson (Room) and Tom McCarthy (Spotlight). Other Searches around Oscars 2016 Red Carpet Dress – Given the hype and mystery around the dresses to be worn by the top actress at the Oscars, the top searched contenders for the Best Red Carpet Dress are, Olivia Wilde, Priyanka Chopra, Jennifer Lawrence, Charlize Theron and Saoirse Ronan. Top Searched Designers – Correspondingly the top searched designers for Oscars 2016 have been Valentino, Zubair Murad, Alexander McQueen, Tadashi Shoji and Calvin Klein. Going back to the previous years, the top searches from across the world for the best Red Carpet Dress have been for Anne Hathaway (2013), Jennifer Lawrence (2013), Jennifer Lopez (2012), Lupita Nyong’o (2015) and Gwyneth Paltrow (2012). Top Searched Acceptance Speeches – Acceptance speeches are part of the Oscars folklore. The memorable ones not only get imprinted in collective memory but also get dredged up through searches year after year. Google Search Trends reveal the top searched acceptance speeches by actors and actresses through the years. Matthew McConaughey (Best Actor 2014), Jared Leto (Best Supporting Actor, 2104), Jennifer Lawrence (Best Actress 2013), Patricia Arquette (Best Supporting Actress 2015) and Meryl Streep (Best Actress 2012) are those whose speeches have been immortalized in public memory and have been the top searched this year.