100%
The whole country, by largest language
Andaman & Nicobar: Bengali 28%Andhra Pradesh: Telugu 89%Arunachal Pradesh: Nissi/Dafla 29%Assam: Assamese 48%Bihar: Hindi 78%Chandigarh: Hindi 74%Chhattisgarh: Hindi 84%Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu: Gujarati 34%Delhi: Hindi 85%Goa: Konkani 66%Gujarat: Gujarati 86%Haryana: Hindi 88%Himachal Pradesh: Hindi 86%Jammu & Kashmir: Kashmiri 54%Jharkhand: Hindi 62%Karnataka: Kannada 66%Kerala: Malayalam 97%Ladakh: Bhotia 38%Lakshadweep: Malayalam 84%Madhya Pradesh: Hindi 89%Maharashtra: Marathi 69%Manipur: Manipuri 53%Meghalaya: Khasi 47%Mizoram: Mizo (Lushai) 73%Nagaland: Konyak 12%Odisha: Odia 83%Puducherry: Tamil 88%Punjab: Punjabi 90%Rajasthan: Hindi 89%Sikkim: Nepali 63%Tamil Nadu: Tamil 88%Telangana: Telugu 75%Tripura: Bengali 66%Uttar Pradesh: Hindi 94%Uttarakhand: Hindi 89%West Bengal: Bengali 86%

Hindi is the largest language · another language leads. External boundaries of India as per Survey of India.

the language map of India's creator economy

India speaks

India's creator economy runs on 22 scheduled languages, not one, and this map shows the largest language in each of the 36 states and union territories. Brief by language, not by city.

36 states & UTs · Census 2011 · creator data 2026
in numbers

22 scheduled languages in the Constitution

121 languages counted in Census 2011

66% of creators live outside the metros*

42% of creators make content in Hindi*

*ISB–Hashfame, July 2026 · others Census 2011 / Constitution
Watch the video · chapters
Video coming soonUntil then, each chapter below jumps to its part of the board.

WHY LANGUAGE BEATS CITY

the brief vs the country

Most briefs buy the smallest slice

A typical brief asks for Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, English. But by 2016 India already had 234 million Indian-language internet users against 175 million English users, and KPMG and Google expected 9 in 10 new users to be Indian-language users. KPMG–Google, 2017.
why it happened

One launch, one price drop

Jio started services on 5 September 2016. Mobile data fell from ₹269 per GB in 2014 to ₹7.77 in 2019, a 97% drop, and wireless data users roughly doubled from 282 million (2014) to 578 million (2018). TRAI.
who the creators are

Two in three are outside the metros

India's creators grew from about 0.96 million (2020) to 4.12 million (2025). 66% are non-metro and 42% make content in Hindi; Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Marathi, Bengali, Malayalam, Gujarati and Bhojpuri creators together are the majority. ISB–Hashfame, July 2026.

WHAT'S CHANGING

the engagement gap

Vernacular gets more replies

One ad-tech platform, AnyMind, reported roughly 2× engagement on vernacular campaigns versus English or Hindi ones. It's one company's data, not a market study, so treat it as a signal to test. exchange4media, March 2025.
three layers, not one

Where the money is underbought

English metro: highest rates, most competition. Hindi: huge, closer to national than regional. Other Indian languages: deep supply in food, lifestyle and entertainment, few agency relationships. Aman's read, not a measured ranking.
what AI changes

Auto-dubbing opens every door

YouTube auto-dubbing reached all channels in 27 languages (Feb 2026). In December 2025 over 6 million people a day watched 10+ minutes of dubbed video, worldwide. Creators who uploaded their own extra audio tracks saw 25%+ of watch time come from other languages. YouTube blog.

NORTH

North: largest language, Census 2011
Jammu & KashmirKashmiri 54%also Hindi 21%
LadakhBhotia 38%also Tibetan 36%
Himachal PradeshHindi 86%
PunjabPunjabi 90%
ChandigarhHindi 74%also Punjabi 22%
HaryanaHindi 88%
DelhiHindi 85%
UttarakhandHindi 89%
Uttar PradeshHindi 94%
RajasthanHindi 89%

CENTRAL & EAST

Central & East: largest language, Census 2011
Madhya PradeshHindi 89%
ChhattisgarhHindi 84%
BiharHindi 78%also Maithili 12%
JharkhandHindi 62%
OdishaOdia 83%
West BengalBengali 86%

WEST

West: largest language, Census 2011
GujaratGujarati 86%
MaharashtraMarathi 69%also Hindi 13%
GoaKonkani 66%also Marathi 11%
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and DiuGujarati 34%also Hindi 30%largest piece shown

SOUTH & THE ISLANDS

South & the islands: largest language, Census 2011
KarnatakaKannada 66%also Urdu 11%
KeralaMalayalam 97%
Tamil NaduTamil 88%
Andhra PradeshTelugu 89%
TelanganaTelugu 75%also Urdu 12%
PuducherryTamil 88%largest piece shown
LakshadweepMalayalam 84%largest piece shown
Andaman & NicobarBengali 28%also Hindi 19%

NORTH-EAST

North-East: largest language, Census 2011
AssamAssamese 48%also Bengali 29%
Arunachal PradeshNissi/Dafla 29%also Adi 17%
NagalandKonyak 12%also Ao 12%
ManipurManipuri 53%
MizoramMizo (Lushai) 73%
TripuraBengali 66%also Tripuri 26%
MeghalayaKhasi 47%also Garo 32%
SikkimNepali 63%

HOW TO BUY IT

step 1

Brief by language

“Marathi-speaking Maharashtra, Tier 2” is a market. “Mumbai creators” is a convenience.
step 2

Check audience language

A Hindi creator can have a Bhojpuri or Punjabi audience. The insights screenshot tells you.
step 3

Split the same budget

Half English metro, half two Indian languages. Compare cost per engaged view, not per follower.
step 4

Ask about dubbing

It costs nothing and changes the reach you buy. Put it in the contract.
the caveat
Regional doesn't mean cheap everywhere. Where creators are scarce, like regional-language finance or tech, prices run higher, not lower. The opening is in well-supplied categories: food, lifestyle, entertainment, fashion.
FAQ & QUIZ · 1

How many languages does the Constitution schedule?

tap to flip ↻
answer

22, in the Eighth Schedule.

FAQ & QUIZ · 2

By 2016, who outnumbered English internet users?

tap to flip ↻
answer

Indian-language users: 234M vs 175M.

FAQ & QUIZ · 3

What share of India's creators are non-metro?

tap to flip ↻
answer

66% (ISB–Hashfame, 2026).

FAQ & QUIZ · 4

How many languages does YouTube auto-dub?

tap to flip ↻
answer

27, for all channels (Feb 2026).

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+ Sticky adds a note · ⬇ asks for an email, then downloads your copy
Largest language per state/UT from Census 2011 (C-16 language tables); “Hindi” follows the census, which groups related mother tongues such as Bhojpuri under Hindi. Telangana and Ladakh/J&K shares are recomputed from district data because both were created after 2011. Creator figures: ISB and Hashfame, Understanding the Canvas of India's Creator Economy (14 July 2026), built on Qoruz platform data. Internet users: KPMG in India and Google, Indian Languages: Defining India's Internet (April 2017). Data prices and subscribers: TRAI (Wireless Data Services report, Aug 2019; Yearly Performance Indicators 2020). Jio start date: Jio release, 2 Sep 2016. Engagement: AnyMind Group via exchange4media (7 Mar 2025), one company's data. Dubbing: YouTube blog (4 Feb 2026, 10 Sep 2025). Map: state boundaries by the DataMeet India community (CC BY 4.0, github.com/datameet/maps), based on Survey of India boundaries; external boundaries of India as per Survey of India. Island and enclave stickers are enlarged and not to scale.

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