Sickness beyond campus: Rape video search trends on Google
Times of India | 2 July 2025
Kolkata: The alleged gang rape of a 24-year-old law student on the campus has led to a surge in online searches for the video, reportedly recorded during the incident. Google Trends data indicates that searches related to the ‘Kolkata law college rape video' have entered the ‘breakout category', suggesting a sharp and rapid increase in public interest in the explicit footage.
Psychologists and women's rights activists described attempts to view revenge porn as ‘voyeuristic', saying it reflected the depravity of those who sought pleasure in watching a woman being abused and tortured.
The video's ‘breakout' category meant it saw a substantial surge in popularity, that specifically saw a growth of more than 5,000% over the selected time period. The Google data shows the search trend peaked between 3.30 pm on June 27 and 1.30 am on June 28, and as of Tuesday, the Google search remained ‘rising'.
TOI reported on Monday that at least two rape videos were found on the cellphone of prime accused Manojit Mishra, which were filmed by co-accused Pramit Mukherjee and Zaib Ahmed. The girl, in her police complaint as well as her statement, said multiple videos were shot which the accused used to blackmail her during and after the crime. She also said Pramit and Zaib took two videos even as Mishra forcibly undressed her, and others were taken of her brutalisation. The videos have been sent to Cyber Forensics & Digital Evidence Examiners Laboratory in Salt Lake.
Psychologist Ratnabali Ray called it "erotic extortion". "People who view ‘revenge porn' may not have committed the rape but they want to fulfil the desire of controlling and humiliating a woman," she said. Activists and digital rights advocates condemned the public interest in the video, calling it a form of secondary abuse that re-victimised the survivor. Police warned that searching for, possessing or circulating such content constituted a criminal offence. "This is not only voyeurism but also a digital assault on the survivor all over again," said a senior officer of Kolkata Police.
Mental health specialists said while many who searched for the videos might have "a sick mind", there could be some who "did it out of curiosity". "One group could be porn addicts who watch such videos for self-gratification, while another group could be those addicted to sociopathic events that offer them morbid pleasure in another's suffering. A few could be doing it out of inquisitiveness and empathy, wanting to witness the violence inflicted on the survivor," said psychiatrist Sabyasachi Mitra.
Women's rights activist Anuradha Kapur said a plausible reason for people wanting to view rape being committed was it made them feel powerful. "It is a reflection of the mindset of a section of our society," she said.
RG Kar assistant professor Rajarshi Neogi said, "It is an inherent inquisitive nature of human beings to search for details. But if one is searching for rape videos, it can have multiple layers. They can search to satisfy their sadistic or voyeuristic pleasure. The number of pornography addicts are increasing. It indicates that rape videos are being searched by pornography addict". (With inputs by Dipawali Mitra)