Gen Z Indians Are Swiping Right On New Pals To Beat The Corona Blues: Tinder

* ‘New connections’, ‘fun hangouts’, and ‘friends within communities’ among top 5 reasons to swipe

* 90% of Gen Z Indians are using their dating apps to find new people or simply stay connected

* Virtual connections are here to stay; 47% of Indian singles say they feel more virtually creative today when compared to 2020

For over a year-and-a-half, the quarantine has left Gen Z Indians craving for a social life glo-up. Sure, we saw interesting trends to stay distracted. But, unfortunately, the Dalgona Coffee only took us so far. Tinder’s recent survey spills that every 1 out of 3 surveyed Gen Z Indian today feels lonely due to lack of social interactions (35%); and believes they’ve had to hit pause on their entire lives (34%).

But many young singletons are embracing the corona blues by getting onto their dating apps, hoping to simply socialise from the comfort of their couches. This Friendship Day, Tinder India highlights the Gen Z outlook towards making new connections when social swiping today.

Yeah romance is cool, but have you ever swiped right on a friend?

Tinder’s recent study reveals that 9 in 10 Gen Z Indians are using their dating apps to find new people or simply stay connected, without worrying about romantic potential. “No surprise,” some would say, what with the pandemic robbing us of the opportunity to socialise or go out and about. In addition to finding romantic relationships and long-term partners, Gen Z Indians cited ‘making new connections’, ‘finding friends in their communities’, and ‘looking for fun hangout buddies’ as the top reasons to swipe today. Goes to show that meeting new people is just as important as finding romantic partners for this audience.

Food, jest, and movies on the minds of young singletons

“Finding my kinda weird” has been a dating essential for as long as we know. In Tinder’s survey  profiles with these passions are most likely to pass the vibe-check this Friendship day. While 41% Indian singles are open to matching with ‘a food lover, just like me’, around 36% hope to match with ‘the one with a sense of humour’ ,  and 32% hope to meet ‘movie enthusiasts’.

Gen Z Indians feel more virtually creative in 2021, but are also making bucket lists for IRL moments with their connections

The lockdown blues have made one thing certain: virtual dates and meaningful connections made online are here to stay. With over a year of online dates and conversations, 47% of Indian singles say they feel more virtually creative today when compared to 2020. In fact, as per Tinder’s ‘Future of Dating report’*, 7 in 10 Gen Z Indians surveyed admitted it was easier to make connections online (68%), while also agreeing that meeting new people online was liberating (67%)*.

While virtual dates and connections are a part of life, as many as 3 in 5 Indian singletons surveyed are looking forward to dipping their toes back into IRL moments and their ideal IRL dating bucket lists now feature simple yet meaningful activities such as ‘walks in parks’ (37%), ‘cooking meals together’ (31%), and ‘outdoorsy activities’ (25%).

Data as per survey conducted by Tinder in June 2021, capturing responses from 400 individuals in India, aged 18-25 years old.

*Future of Dating Survey data comes from 2000 singles surveyed in India fielded between September and November 2020