More Indians meditated through apps in 2020 than a year ago. One such app increased its number of users by more than 50% compared to 2019. Many have attributed the change to Covid-induced stress and mental health issues. According to an online survey done last year by the Indian Journal of Psychiatry to gauge the impact of the pandemic, about 40% of respondents reported anxiety or depressive symptoms. About 74% reported a moderate level of stress.
This has led to an increase in the number of people seeking wellness solutions, like meditation, online. Fitbit India registered an almost 25-fold increase in meditation activity from 2019 amongst its users in India.
Thinkright.me, a desi meditation app, took a random sample of 1,000 users from Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Pune to understand for how long were the users in these cities meditating and why. “We found that relationships – both at home and work – were one of the biggest drivers, along with stress management and sleep problems, for practising meditation,” said Rajan Navani, vice-chairman and managing director, Jetsyntheses that owns the app.
A report by Sensor Tower, a marketing intelligence company, said mental health and wellness apps globally generated two million more downloads in April 2020 than January 2020.
While international apps like Calm and Headspace dominate the online meditation space, Indian apps are also tapping into this growing market. Dhyana, which was launched in October 2019, saw a 33-fold increase in the number of users between March and December 2020. “Earlier meditation was just something that helped you sleep, but during the pandemic it got you through the day,” said Bhairav Shankar, MD, Dhayana.
Mindhouse, another made-in-India meditation app, was also launched at the peak of the pandemic in April 2020 and has had 2 lakh downloads till now.
On an average the total time spent meditating by a person on ThinkRight.me daily was 30 minutes over multiple sessions. In Mumbai, majority of the users, 70%, meditated for peace and personal growth, 20% for happiness and 10% for better sleep.
In comparison, in Delhi, 80% meditated for better sleep and stress management and 20% for personal growth. Women in the national capital formed 80% of the user base. Most of the users in Delhi, 60%, were employed while 20% included homemakers and students. The app saw a 50% increase in the number of people signing up, 53% increase in time spent meditating and 40% jump in frequency of meditation.
About 10% of the users were below the age of 18-25 years, highlighting how Covid impacted children and teenagers as well.
This has led to an increase in the number of people seeking wellness solutions, like meditation, online. Fitbit India registered an almost 25-fold increase in meditation activity from 2019 amongst its users in India.
Thinkright.me, a desi meditation app, took a random sample of 1,000 users from Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Pune to understand for how long were the users in these cities meditating and why. “We found that relationships – both at home and work – were one of the biggest drivers, along with stress management and sleep problems, for practising meditation,” said Rajan Navani, vice-chairman and managing director, Jetsyntheses that owns the app.
A report by Sensor Tower, a marketing intelligence company, said mental health and wellness apps globally generated two million more downloads in April 2020 than January 2020.
While international apps like Calm and Headspace dominate the online meditation space, Indian apps are also tapping into this growing market. Dhyana, which was launched in October 2019, saw a 33-fold increase in the number of users between March and December 2020. “Earlier meditation was just something that helped you sleep, but during the pandemic it got you through the day,” said Bhairav Shankar, MD, Dhayana.
Mindhouse, another made-in-India meditation app, was also launched at the peak of the pandemic in April 2020 and has had 2 lakh downloads till now.
On an average the total time spent meditating by a person on ThinkRight.me daily was 30 minutes over multiple sessions. In Mumbai, majority of the users, 70%, meditated for peace and personal growth, 20% for happiness and 10% for better sleep.
In comparison, in Delhi, 80% meditated for better sleep and stress management and 20% for personal growth. Women in the national capital formed 80% of the user base. Most of the users in Delhi, 60%, were employed while 20% included homemakers and students. The app saw a 50% increase in the number of people signing up, 53% increase in time spent meditating and 40% jump in frequency of meditation.
About 10% of the users were below the age of 18-25 years, highlighting how Covid impacted children and teenagers as well.