Duolingo's India quest: Finding virality in a nation full of polyglots

Duolingo, a language-learning app founded in 2011, has found great relevance internationally. Besides hoarding approximately 113 million monthly active users (MAUs) and 37.2 million daily active users (DAUs), the app has become somewhat of a pop culture reference, with thousands of memes built around its communications strategy—the ominous push notifications that sound more like a threat than reminders. 

The app entered India in 2016, introducing customised features for the Hindi-speaking folks. Primarily, the app helped the Hindi speakers learn English. But, we’re in 2024, and the Indian user behaviour on the app has changed dramatically, that is as per Karandeep Singh Kapany, who is the regional marketing director of Duolingo India.

As per Kapany, there’s a huge wave of Indians showing interest in foreign languages like Korean and Japanese, thanks to the overwhelming influence of K-pop and Japanese anime on many Indians.

That isn’t to say that a regular Duolingo enthusiast of this country is walking around greeting others with ‘Konnichi wa’ or ‘Annyeong haseyo’. No, Indians are still largely using the app to learn English. But the East Asian cultures are picking up pace, it seems. 

Kapany joined Duolingo in 2021, after having worked with other brands across multiple categories such as Titan, Titan’s Tanishq, and VerSe (DailyHunt). He held multiple marketing roles across these companies in a career that has already crossed more than a decade. 

Duolingo's marketing strategy for India

Having led Duolingo’s marketing for nearly four years now, Kapany says the brand is seeing a spectacular reception in India while admitting that there is a lot of room for growth in terms of awareness and brand building.

India serves as the largest English-learning market for Duolingo, and hence is of ultimate importance to the company.

Speaking of awareness, the brand’s key marketing strategy in India is built distinctly around digital, where Duolingo, following the footsteps of its international success, is banking on social media-first campaigns geared solely towards organic virality. No action on the traditional media front, as per Kapany. But the brand isn't opposed to the idea; it just isn't in the plans at the moment. 

India and its challenges

A challenge for the brand in the Indian market is the fact that every state has a new culture, constituting a new set of languages, customs, and traditions. This linguistic and cultural diversity poses a unique challenge for a brand like Duolingo, as it must navigate the complexity of catering to a multilingual population with distinct learning needs and preferences. 

With over 1,600 languages and dialects spoken across India, prioritising which languages to offer becomes a strategic puzzle. Additionally, regional variations in script, pronunciation, and context mean that a standardised approach may not resonate universally. 

However, Kapany suggests that this also means that the opportunities in the country are that many more. Also, there appears to be significant vocal group of xenophiles amongst Indians, showing great appreciation for foreign languages. The top names are your usual suspects—French, Spanish, German, Japanese, Korean, and above all, English. 

Watch the full video to get a more comprehensive understanding of Duolingo’s marketing strategy in India, including some of its popular campaigns in the country, and its overall ambitions and objectives in this nation full of polyglots.