GOAT, OG, YOLO: The evolving vocabulary of Indian politics to engage youth

In the global political arena, social media has emerged as a potent tool for politicians to connect with their electorate. This is particularly evident in India, where political parties have adopted dynamic messaging strategies on social media platforms, tailoring their vocabulary to engage the youth.

Take, for instance, a song, titled Vote for GOAT, recently released by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on its YouTube channel. The lyrics, which included phrases like “Jai Hind to the OG” and “Modiji to hain next-gen ke green flag (Modi is next gen’s green flag)”, were a clear call to action for the youth, particularly first-time voters, to cast their votes in favour of the BJP.

The language used by these political parties has evolved to resonate with millennials and Gen Z, the demographic born between 1997 and 2012. A notable example of this was when a clip of Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying, “Thodi si vibe bhi to check ho jaye (Let's have a bit of a vibe check)” at the National Creators Awards 2024 in New Delhi went viral.

Not just the BJP, other political parties have also adapted their communication to align with contemporary trends. In October 2022, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh shared a photo of Rahul Gandhi from the Bharat Jodo Yatra on Instagram, captioning it “GOAT”. Another post by the Indian National Congress in the same month featured the word “YOLO”.

Harish Bijoor, a business and brand Strategy expert and founder of Harish Bijoor Consults, believes that such language helps to “youngify” political parties. He explains that most political parties are associated with imagery that is considered old-fashioned, such as khadi clothing, caps, and potbellies. “Younger audiences would like to vibe with a different imagery and digital media provides that opportunity,” he said.

Contemporary terms like GOAT (greatest of all time), OG (original gangster), green flag, vibe check, and YOLO (you only live once) have become integral to the language used by the younger generation in India, especially on the internet.

Sandeep Goyal of Rediffusion views this as the “expected smartness” of these parties. “Political parties are very savvy. They need to, and do have their ear to the ground,” he said, adding that language is a pathway for empathetic communication.

Samit Sinha, founder and managing partner at Alchemist Brand Consulting, explained that this strategy is employed because a significant portion of India's eligible voters are under 30 years of age. According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), 29.8 per cent of the eligible voters in India fall within the 18-29 age group.

Sinha pointed out that a large number of “swing” votes come from this group. Older voters are more likely to have a fixed political ideology and allegiance. “As a first-time or a younger voter, you are more likely to be influenced to switch,” he said. He also noted that for younger people, the main source of information is their mobile phones. “It is a different environment and language than, say, print, TV and radio. And therefore, it’s understandable that to reach them you would use a language that is more familiar to them.”

In the coming years, experts predict that the use of such language will gain prevalence in Indian politics as this generation ages. “It is going to be the same people who are 20-30 years old today, that are going to be 40-50 years old later,” Sinha said. This suggests that the language of politics in India is set to evolve alongside its electorate.