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eBay India ( www.eBay.in ), India 's leading online marketplace, was witness to clear themes and trends that dominated the interests of Indians through 20007. The vast range of items sold on the site means that 'eBayability' is the ultimate barometer of what's hot. By looking at the volume of listings and sales over the year, eBay India has created a unique run down of 2007 and what's caught the country's imagination.

2007 Trends

Trend I – Bollywood taking over not only India but also the world. After Amitabh, Shahrukh and Aishwairya Rai joined in the leagues of the most unforgettable Indian celebrities with their life size statues in Madam Tussauds Wax Museums, Bollywood memorabilia and experiences have proved popular with Indian & worldwide eBay users.

• eBay India witnessed the Bollywood craze with Shahrukh Khan topping the eBay Bollywood Barometer 2007 with the maximum memorabilia listed (283 live listings).
• Akshay Kumar and Hrithik Roshan follow Shahrukh and emerge in the top 3 celebrities on eBay India . Fighting for the top 5 slot are the evergreen Amitabh Bachchan and Sanjay Dutt.
• Marriage seemed to have reduced Abhishek Bachchan's popularity, with him coming at No. 10 on the Bollywood Barometer
• In the actresses' slot, Madhuri Nene's comeback with Aaja Nachle has clearly made the waves with her being the top actress with over 192 listings.
• Rekha and Aishwairya Rai-Bachchan join her in the top three, by coming in second and third respectively.
• Unsurprisingly, Bollywood's latest entrant and Om Shanti Om star, Deepika Padukone makes to the list, however on the No. 10 position.

(Source: eBay Bollwood Barometer)

* eBay Bollywood Barometer is based on No. of Live Listings on eBay India (www.ebay.in) on December 20, 2007. The range of products varies from Movie Memorabilia like Film Magazine Covers, Posters to Movies & Books.

Additionally, eBay India also saw interesting listings such as Salman Khan signed Marigold memorabilia , an auction to have coffee with Shreyas Talpade and Mandira Bedi's World Cup Sarees .

For aspiring singers, waiting to enter the big dreamy world of Bollywood , eBay India and Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Academy, a music gurukul for aspiring singers, joined hands and gave millions of eBay users the opportunity to showcase their talent through the sale of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Academy application forms.

Trend II - Sporting Heroes are the most sought after idols.

eBay India saw a healthy trend of listing from the sporting fraternity, mainly cricketers with listings such as a chance to bat against the highest wicket-taker in Test match history Muttiah Muralitharan to Irfan Pathan's autographed cricket bats to even Yuvraj Singh's Honda City car on sale.

During the World Cup 2007, the eBay India community voted for the Most Stylish Cricketer. The Community's top three picks included Rahul Dravid, followed by Brian Lara and Shane Bond.

The community's vote on most stylish cricketer corresponded with the number of listings on site with Brian Lara and Rahul Dravid competing for the Number 1 position. Coming second, was Yuvraj Singh followed by Dhoni. A few international cricketers' memorabilia like Ricky Ponting and Andrew Flintoff had a few listings to their credit.

* Please Note: No. of Live Listings on eBay India (www.ebay.in) on December 20, 2007

Trend III - Patriotism clearly rings a bell but in a new avatar of Indianness

New India and Nationalism was a clear trend with more and more youth associating with their Indianness. Some indications were the Brain Gain - Indian's returning to their motherland and strong feelings among youth throughout all media. We also saw campaigns such as Spirit of India around Independence Day become a great success with the Indian youth. The Spirit of India campaign, displayed many hundreds of products of historic interest. Divided into four main themes, the campaign succeeded at igniting the patriotism of every Indian. The "Collector's Paradise " theme showcased rare coins & notes as well as pre-independence era stamps. The " Independence Memorabilia" theme showcased rare Gandhi & Nehru memorabilia as well as old records. The " India Pride" has art, sculpture, handicrafts & ethnic apparel. The "Classics Corner" theme showcased classic books and movies.

During the year, a 70 year old Mumbai collector also listed an extremely rare document, bearing the signature of the former royalty of Hyderabad- the late Mir Osman Ali Khan Bahadur, Nizam VII of Hyderabad.

A brand new niche hobby called Scripophily took centre stage as select sellers from across India traded in historical and cancelled bonds and shares with no financial value!

Trend IV – Spiritualism and Secularism go hand in hand

Secularism and Spiritualism was the flavour of the year with eBay India sellers and buyers celebrating all festivals from Ganapati and Diwali to Christmas, Valentines and Rakhsha Bandhan.

Spiritualism continued to be a key interest with the Rudraksh being one of the top products bought on eBay. Many other spiritual products like Yantras, Home Temples , Puja accessories, vastu and feng shui items were bought by eager eBayers. Today there are over 750 live listings in the Religious and Healing category.

Trend V – Personal gadgets: a hot favourite

Gadgets became an extension of Indian youth's personality this year, with an ipod or a mobile phone being the constant companion. Gadget Crazy Indians saw a slate of most wanted tech products on the eBay site from 106 listings of the Nokia N95 to 93 listings of the iPod Touch. The technology category saw some fascinating items such as digital photo frames and even a digital pendant!

Out of the top 5 most sold items in December, 4 were tech items including Mobile handsets and accessories, MP3 players and accessories and laptop accessories. Top searches on the site included iPod Nano, iPhone and Nokia N95, laptops and PlayStation.

Trend VI – Offbeat humour

Indians clearly have an offbeat sense of humour and are buying and selling some very unique stuff.

eBay India saw some very interesting listings in 2007 including

• A plant that spelled the message of your heart – with two options friends forever and I lover you, this was a very special Valentines gift for your loved one!
• For those interested there was even a Gold bikini with rubies on auction!
• Offbeat Humour caught on with a green nose shaped spectacles holder and a seller selling his dad's 15 year old shaving brush for sale!

(If you enjoyed reading this and would like to know more about any specific trend, please contact mediacentreindia@ebay.com )

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