iWorld
Creators of Habit IIGC marks 2 December as India’s first World Influencer Day
MUMBAI: Influence clearly has its day and now, thanks to the Indian Influencer Governing Council (IIGC), it finally has its own date on the calendar too. In a first-of-its-kind move, the Council has declared 2 December as World Influencer Day, giving India’s vast creator community the kind of collective spotlight usually reserved for blockbuster stars and policy-makers.
And in true influencer fashion, the celebration isn’t a quiet affair. It arrives with stories, sessions, hashtags, and an industry-first certification, all aimed at giving creators not a pedestal, but a platform that finally matches their cultural impact.
In the run-up to the big day, IIGC invited creators to share the turning points that shaped their journeys, the flukes, flops, breakthroughs and breakdowns that led them to where they are. Hundreds responded, sending in videos that span language, region, content style and personality. The sheer diversity of the submissions, showcased in IIGC’s Creator Stories highlight reel, doubles up as a portrait of India’s digital culture in all its messy, inventive glory.
The centrepiece of the festivities, however, is a step towards something more structural, the IIGC Certified Influencer Program, promoted as India’s first formal certification for creators. Designed to equip them with guidelines on content responsibility, ecosystem standards, and professional best practices, the programme aims to create a generation of creators who are not just popular, but prepared. Graduates will carry an official “IIGC Certified” tag, a badge the Council says will offer credibility with brands and platforms navigating an often chaotic space.
IIGC chairman Sahil Chopra framed the day as a declaration of intent, not a ceremonial nod. “World Influencer Day belongs to every creator whose voice sparks change, every brand that trusts digital storytelling, and every consumer inspired by authentic content,” he said. “With the launch of the IIGC Certified Influencer Program, we’re not just celebrating creators, we’re building meaningful pathways for education, structure, and long-term success.”
Beyond celebrations, the Council turned the spotlight inward with World Influencer Day Spotlight Sessions, a special edition of IIGC Talks. The conversations paired well-known creators with senior marketers, digging into what actually drives partnerships, how the creator–brand relationship is evolving, and what authenticity looks like in a data-led ecosystem.
The lineup reads like a crash course in today’s marketing power map creators Harpreeth Suri, Shirin Sewani and Shashank Srivastava in conversation with heavyweights including K. Ganapathy Subramaniam (CMO, LT Foods), Pooja Baid (CMO, Versuni), Manasi Karmarkar (head of digital marketing, W for Woman), Shailja Joshi (senior director, marketing, Pepsico), Suneet Singh (senior vice president, marketing, Whiteland Corporation) and Barun Prabhakar (CMO, GRM Overseas).
Many of them didn’t hold back when talking about the influence of, well, influencers. “Creators have transformed how brands connect with people,” said LT Foods’ K. Ganapathy Subramaniam. “They bring authenticity, speed and real emotional resonance into modern marketing.”
Creators echoed that sentiment with an edge. Fashion and lifestyle creator Harpreeth Suri said the celebration finally validates the role creators play, regardless of whether they boast a million followers or a few thousand highly engaged ones. “What matters is the contribution,” she said. “IIGC celebrating World Influencer Day gives creators the respect they deserve.”
On Instagram, the mood has already turned festive. Hundreds of creators have posted gratitude messages, sharing what the journey has meant to them, the late nights, the algorithm anxieties, the learning curves, and the unexpected communities built along the way. Many credited IIGC for offering a sense of belonging in an industry that often feels like a solo sport.
With hashtags like #WorldInfluencerDay and #ThankYouInfluencers already gaining traction, and with creators signing up for the certification programme in sizeable numbers, IIGC seems intent on transforming the celebration into a yearly moment of both reflection and reform.
In a landscape where trends shift faster than a reel can load, World Influencer Day arrives as a rare pause, a moment that both applauds the creator economy and attempts to anchor it. And if the Council’s plans are anything to go by, this may be the start of a more accountable, more skilled, and more empowered era of Indian influence.
iWorld
What SMS letters G, T, S and P mean and how they help spot scams
Small alphabet tags on messages reveal whether texts are government or ads.
MUMBAI: Sometimes the smallest letter in a message can be the biggest clue. In an age where smartphone users receive dozens of alerts every day, the tiny alphabet appearing at the end of many SMS messages can reveal whether a text is official, transactional, service related or simply promotional. Understanding these tags can help users quickly identify legitimate messages and stay alert to potential scams.
Under telecom regulations in India, SMS senders are required to categorise messages based on their purpose. As a result, many texts end with a single letter that indicates the type of communication being sent.
If an SMS ends with the letter G, it typically means the message has been sent by a government authority. These alerts may include information about public services, government schemes, safety advisories or emergency notifications such as natural disaster warnings.
A message ending with the letter T signals a transactional SMS. These are usually sent by banks, financial institutions or digital services to confirm activities such as payments, account updates or one time passwords (OTPs).
The letter S represents a service related message. These notifications commonly come from companies and online platforms providing updates about services or orders. For instance, e commerce platforms like Amazon or Flipkart often send delivery updates and order confirmations that end with the letter S.
Meanwhile, SMS messages ending with the letter P are promotional in nature. These texts are typically marketing communications sent by businesses advertising products, offers or services such as education programmes, fashion sales or loan schemes.
Understanding these simple tags can also help users stay cautious about fraudulent messages. Cybersecurity experts note that scam messages often do not follow these regulated formats and may arrive without any category letter at the end.
While the absence of a tag does not automatically mean a message is fraudulent, it can serve as an early warning sign encouraging users to verify the source before clicking links or sharing personal information.
For those who wish to reduce marketing texts altogether, telecom operators also provide Do Not Disturb (DND) options.
Users of Jio can activate DND through the MyJio app by navigating to the menu, selecting settings and enabling the DND option with preferred filters.
Similarly, subscribers of Airtel and Vi can enable the same feature through their respective mobile apps to block promotional messages.
In a digital world flooded with alerts and notifications, recognising what a single letter means could make the difference between a harmless update and a potential scam.
