IKEA, declared a placard at the student protests in Delhi, had a better cabinet than the Narendra Modi government. Another claimed that the protester’s ex had ignored them less than the government had. In Bengaluru, pop singer Taylor Swift appeared on a sign to note that theIndian exam papers had leaked– but photographs of her recent wedding singer had not.

The same zany spirit infused online reels and memes. Videos of demonstrators running from the police were edited to the soundtrack of the mobile game Subway Surfers. Others shared their Strava maps and celebrated meeting their daily step targets during marches.

This internet-native language drew from dating terminology, work, gaming, anime, celebrity culture and several layers of previous jokes. It assumed an audience that has spent enough time online to recognise the template before reading the words imposed on it.

The unfamiliar language had done little to weaken the political force of the protest. That was obvious on Saturday, when the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan was announced. As the protestors achieved their main demand, celebrations broke out at Jantar Mantar and the movement declared victory before ending its agitation.

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For someone outside that audience, a placard or meme of this sort can seem silly or obscure. Familiar words are used ironically, an insult becomes a badge, a relationship joke carries a complaint about public administration. Several references can be packed into one sentence, with little assistance for anyone arriving late to the party.

The political demands, however, required much less interpretation: protesters had asked for the resignation of the education minister, compensation for families of students who died by suicide, protection against criminal cases, transparent investigations into examination failures and broader reform of the system.

By Saturday, the........

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