A survey reveals that when it comes to mobile consumables, we are just behind Mexico
People with headphones on and glaring at their phones is not a new sight. Nor do the people hovering around them —checking out the latest updates of their favourite series or just looking out of curiosity — feel they are intruding someone’s private space. The digital medium has given birth to a new kind of Indian binger who won’t put a stop to his entertainment just because s/he is on the go.
Bingeing has officially been taken out of the living room into the public space where Indians are rewriting their rules of entertainment. In fact, according to a video stream company survey, Indians are the second-highest public bingers in the world (88 per cent), just behind Mexico (89 per cent).
It’s no surprise then that 71 per cent Indians are bingeing in public more than last year. While out and about, they are gasping, laughing, and even crying. So, the question is: Why are we willing to expose our entertainment emotions to watch outside our homesIJ Well, primarily because public bingers rank having access to movies or shows higher than food and water as “essential” items for commuting or travelling. Just be prepared that streaming Stranger Things 2 while surrounded by strangers is making social norms go upside down. And catching someone snooping on your screen during a risque scene or laughing on a crowded train is the new normal. This means the new Indian binger has no qualms about airing private emotions.
We are Bingeing Anytime, Anywhere: The breadth of public bingeing in India makes sense because public bingers watch their favourite shows or movies anytime they have downtime. We binge everywhere, but especially while on trains (65 per cent), buses (58 per cent) or on a flight (52 per cent).
We’re Being Interrupted By Strangers: Guess you’re not alone if you’ve encountered the same situation. Half (50 per cent) of public bingers in India have had a stranger interrupt their show or movie to start a conversation about what they’re watching. But, hey, episode intruders are likely just jealous we remembered to download Daredevil before leaving the house. In fact, one in two Indians stream/download their binge for their daily commute. Fun fact: one in four Indians has missed a stop because they couldn’t stop bingeing! And a third have pretended not to have seen/heard someone while watching.
We’ve Got Our Binge Face On! Where’s YoursIJ That sly look Pablo Escobar channels every time he’s about to get ahead of the DEA agents in NarcosIJ Yeah, that ain’t fooling anyone. Or, maybe it is because 30 per cent public bingers have been embarrassed while watching something. But they’ve dealt with it in their own way, by first checking to see if anyone notices (47 per cent) or pretending like nothing happened (41 per cent).
We Wear Our Shows On Our Sleeves: No matter how meticulously we curate our lives on social media, there’s no filter for laughter or tears in real life. Over 72 per cent Indians have laughed out loud with their favourite characters, 26 per cent have cried in public, and 29 per cent have literally jumped out of their seat in surprise. If Dustin’s pearls and his pearls of wisdom had you in splits while watching Stranger Things 2, and earned you stray glances from strangers around, we don’t blame you.
We Carry our Binge Everywhere: We’re also packing a binge while packing our bags. It is, in fact, such a big deal that it is among the top five travel essentials (44 per cent), along with wifi (48 per cent) and a comfortable seat (49 per cent), a charger (41 per cent) and food (37 per cent). Maybe it’s time to adjust the hierarchy of needs. So, here’s to the Indian binger who doesn’t care about being caught laughing or crying in public.