Yahoo report: PM Modi India’s most-searched personality, followed by Virat Kohli; Aryan Khan top newsmaker

Yahoo India announced its 2021 Year in Review, and saw a number of new entries.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi reclaimed the India's Most Searched Personality title, a position he has held consistently since 2017. PM Modi had lost the title last year to late actor Sushant Singh Rajput.


Cricketer Virat Kohli, who had a chequered year with highs and lows, came in at No. 2, while West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee rounded off the top 3 on the back of a decisive win in the state assembly election. The sudden demise of popular TV actor Sidharth Shukla placed him at No. 4.

This year's list had a notable new entrant, actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan who came in at No. 7 on the Most-Searched Personality list, with massive interest online following his arrest by the Narcotics Control Bureau in October.

Khan Jr also made his debut in the Top Newsmakers list, at No. 1. Topics like farmers' protest, black fungus, 2021 Union Budget, West Bengal elections, and the Afghanistan crisis made the maximum buzz, Raj Kundra's pornography case was also most-talked about.

Virat Kohli was the most-searched sports personality, in India and globally, followed by Mahendra Singh Dhoni. While javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra ruled the fifth spot, football players Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were the only two international names in the list.

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk dominated the Most-Searched Business Person list, followed by Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani and Microsoft founder Bill Gates at number two and three, respectively. Tata Trust Chairman Ratan Tata and stock-trader Rakesh Jhunjhunwala were placed at fourth and fifth place, respectively.

Shukla, who died of heart attack at the age of 40 in September, also became the Most-Searched Male Celebrity of 2021. Bollywood actor Salman Khan and Telugu star Allu Arjun were ranked second and third on the list, respectively.

Late actors who passed this year, Puneeth Rajkumar and Dilip Kumar, also made it to the list.

As far as the Most-Searched Female Celebrities is concerned, Kareena Kapoor Khan topped the list, followed by Katrina Kaif and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Alia Bhatt and Deepika Padukone were positioned at number four and five, respectively

Telugu star Samantha Ruth Prabhu joined Shilpa Shetty Kundra and Kangana Ranaut in the list after she announced she was separating from her actor-husband Naga Chaitanya.