How Young, Digitally-Connected Indians Are Navigating Love, Friendship And Family
Key Questions
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Who do young people turn to first when something feels emotionally heavy, in love specifically, and in life generally?
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How are young people actually finding romantic partners, and what role do dating apps really play compared to friends, family, and social media?
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Who counts as “family” for young people today, what are the roles of friends and how has the definition of ‘chosen family’ shifted in recent years?
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What shapes young men’s willingness or reluctance to reach out emotionally when they are feeling loneliness, particularly what they were taught growing up about showing feelings?
Dil, Dosti, Data 2 is jointly published by Youth Ki Awaaz and Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies, in collaboration with Manotsava, the National Mental Health Festival 2026. Across this second wave, 3,072 young Indians answered honestly about who they turn to when something hurts, what they’re afraid of in love, who they call family, and how much they carry alone. This report talks about the silence young men hold, the friendships that function as lifelines, and a generation that is not waiting for permission to redefine what belonging looks like. Across the data-led snapshots, the picture that emerges is of a youth quietly rewriting the rules of connection.
The survey was conducted in May 2026 through Yoot, Youth Ki Awaaz’s WhatsApp-based polling infrastructure, drawing responses from across 35 states and union territories. It is the second of two waves, the first fielded between August and October 2025 and together the two rounds have now reached over 6,000 young people, making this one of the larger studies of its kind. The questions explore relationship status, first responses to emotional distress, who counts as chosen family, what changed in respondents’ idea of family, and the specific experiences of loneliness in young men and boys.
Key Takeaways
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13% of young people would turn first to an AI tool such as ChatGPT when something in their love life turns painful, ahead of the 7% who would go first to a therapist.
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7 in 10 have unfollowed someone online at least once to protect their wellbeing,
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51% define real friendship as non-judgmental sharing
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2 in 3 say they feel lonely in a relationship or situationship
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Only 16% of young men say they’d talk to someone they trust first when something feels heavy
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