Top cultural trends: Apodacalypse, authenticonomy, and desi-baiting

New Delhi: “It’s like one person started puking and others followed suit,” said Samay Raina while defining the podcasting situation in India. The comedian may not have been subtle with his language but one can’t disagree with how cramped the podcasting space in the country is. 

With the overwhelming number of podcasts available on platforms such as Spotify, Audible, and YouTube, the market is lingering on the verge of saturation. It has come to a point where even quality content struggles to break through the noise.

Apodacalypse

Highlighting the overwhelming surge of podcasts in an already saturated digital space, a culture report “Consumed: A Deep Dive Into Consumer Culture In India” by Kommune and its Insight vertical calls it “Apodacalypse.” 

The term resonates among the audience as they face content fatigue while creators struggle to differentiate themselves in an already saturated market. What felt like a warning to podcast creators, the report highlighted that “Podcast audiences may start to disengage as they feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of new shows, leaving less room for discovery and more focus on established names.”

Authenticonomy

Another motif in the report is authenticity, which in consumer culture refers to an economy where authenticity is more valuable than perfection. Brands and creators who are real and transparent are gaining more trust from consumers, as people seek genuine, relatable content rather than highly curated, polished versions of reality.  Coining a term for how brands are going beyond leaps and bounds to present themselves as authentic, the report calls this marketing tactic ‘authenticonomy.’

While citing how brands have garnered higher sales by presenting them as authentic, the report also warns about the dangers of over-authenticity. As per the report, “While authenticity is valued, over-sharing or staged authenticity can backfire. Audiences are quick to sense when ‘realness’ is too calculated,  leading to a loss of trust.

Brands trying to capitaliSe on the 'Authenticonomy' by pushing forced  relatability or oversharing personal details may find themselves alienating  their audience instead of connecting with them.”

Desi-Baiting

Be it brands or politicians, everyone wants to present themselves as ‘Desi’ as they can to win over the rural heartland. Calling the marketing tactic that appeals to Indian cultural pride and nostalgia, the report labels it as ‘Desi-Baiting.’ 

Brands often use traditional Indian elements and symbols to attract Indian audiences. This trend, called ‘Desi Baiting,’ taps into cultural pride but can seem fake if not done sincerely. While ‘Desi-Baiting may seem like the more sensible thing to do but there’s a catch here. 

According to the report, “Brands engaging in ‘Desi Baiting’ excessively playing up cultural references to appeal to Indian audiences risk coming off as inauthentic,  which can lead to a backlash. Consumers, particularly Gen Z, are more aware of inauthenticity, and  brands that pander too blatantly to cultural sentiments may face  reputational damage by being called out for ‘cultural appropriation.’”

Pincode Core

Reflecting the hyper-localisation of consumer behaviour means that brands and content creators focus on understanding and catering to the specific preferences of people in different regions or even specific neighborhoods. T

Terming this approach as ‘Pincode Core’ the report highlighted the rise of hyperlocal business strategies catering to specific neighborhood needs, especially by D2C brands/services and food delivery platforms.

Suggesting brands to be cautious while going hyper-local, the report mentions how brands with an extreme focus on hyper-localisation run the risk of missing out on nationwide market opportunities.

Sachet Culture

In India’s creator economy, monetisation targets English-speaking, Tier 1, and niche audiences like startups and finance, while ‘Bharat’ focuses on gaining fame with a broader, mainstream audience. Nano influencers recognize the country’s diverse population, and brands are tapping into their influence. Companies are shifting towards hyper-targeted communication, catering to local tastes first before scaling globally. 

Described as ‘Sachet Culture,’ the report hints at an undercurrent advising brands “While sachet culture democratizes access, over-reliance on regional trends might prevent a brand from scaling effectively.”

Your AI is showing

This term describes a scenario when AI personalisation is too obvious or intrusive, making users uncomfortable. It shows the fine line between helpful and invasive AI, urging brands to be more subtle with machine learning. 

Consumers are noticing when AI recommendations feel too personal and they are beginning to call it a breach of privacy as well. In the words of Kommune and Stumble, “When users see overly personalised ads that seem to know too much about their browsing  habits, they often react negatively, a phenomenon described as 'Your AI is  Showing.' 

There’s a thin line between helpful AI and creepy AI. When consumers feel like their personal data is being overly mined or used to push hyper-specific recommendations, it creates discomfort.”

Speaking further about consumption patterns across millennials, the report pointed out that young people seek to “signal” their taste and status through their consumption – often spending to fit in. Many communities and fandoms today are centred around consumption – skincare fans accumulate products, sneakerheads collect shoes, and BookTok and Bookstagram are encouraging ‘hauls’ of books.

How are India’s creators and consumers merging, diverging, and reinventing culture?

The rise of Neo-Creators blurs the line between content makers and consumers. This fosters parasocial relationships with their audience. 

As on-demand content and digital streaming are on the rise, consumers are seeking curated content while dealing with FOMO on what’s beyond. 

There is an uptick in people wanting to unplug, seeking IRL extensions of their URL personas, giving rise to phygital communities like Cubbon Reads, Zomato’s District, and Nike Run Club.  

The Indian diaspora is growing. It's important to find ways to stay connected, and hence, how we represent ourselves online is becoming a crucial part of our identity. 

⁠People are seeking offline experiences to escape screen fatigue. While the idea of "buying experiences, not things" was popular, we often treat experiences as disposable objects; in fact, we hardly see things and experiences as different at all.

The digital divide is widening. This creates a two-tiered world: those who are digitally connected and those who are not. India is a stark example of this divide. 

⁠People are increasingly using credit to buy things they can't afford, leading to a debt crisis. While financial literacy is improving, the credit boom is a major concern. 

Social media has changed our friendships, where we now microdose our friendships through soft check-ins and passive interactions – such as sending memes to each other and reacting to them without actually having a conscious interaction.

The insights are gleaned from research reports and insights from over 100 experts across 17 sectors like media, music, cinema, literature, and entrepreneurship—including artists, marketers, strategists, creators, and entrepreneurs, each of whom brings a distinct voice. The experts who have contributed to the report include Tanmay Bhat, Viraj Seth, Smriti Kiran, Amit Varma, Roshan Abbas, Mandovi Menon, Reema Maya, and more.

"Consumed" is a report that underscores the idea of culture as a living, evolving entity—not a fixed business metric or absolute truth. It aims to help brands, students, collectives, academics, organisations, and pretty much all of us understand and navigate cultural trends shaping our present and future. In a time when culture feels stuck, influenced by algorithms and financial incentives, this report is timely, providing insights to stay adaptable as media, technology, and policies continue to evolve.

These trends offer a roadmap for planners, brands, creators, and agencies to navigate the complexities of the Indian consumer market in 2025. By understanding these forces, marketers can develop more targeted and impactful campaigns that resonate with the evolving needs and desires of Indian audiences. Additionally, with lines blurring between creators and consumers, we witness the rise of a burgeoning new class—the Neo-Creator. This helps drive democratic content creation, fostering creative careers, redefining social capital, and opening up new opportunities for brands through the creator economy.

Roshan Abbas, Founder of Kommune India, said, “At Stumble, we're cultural soothsayers decoding today's technicolour chaos. As we went through reports and gathered opinions, we peeked into our crystal ball of post-pandemic trends, speaking to experts with surprising insights and tomorrow's zeitgeist of our times. The output both surprised us and helped us make sense of our whirlwind present and glimpse the future that's already here.”

“Consumed” has tactfully created pathways for innovation by combining primary research methodologies with meticulous study of the success stories of brands like Duolingo, Try Guys, Reliance Jio, Mokobara, Ather Energy, and Beco spanning across 17 sectors.