Koo, an Indian version of Twitter, recently came into prominence after union minister Piyush Goyal announced that he will be on the app. "I am now on Koo. Connect with me on this Indian micro-blogging platform for real-time, exciting and exclusive updates. Let us exchange our thoughts and ideas on Koo,” he had tweeted a couple of days ago.

This microblogging — the Indian alternative to Twitter — is in keeping with India’s theme of 'Atmanirbhar Bharat’. Though it was developed in March 2020, it has now come to light as many government officials have created their accounts on the app.

The rise of this app comes in the backdrop of Twitter’s standoff with the central government over the blocking and unblocking of accounts linked to the farmer protests.

Who is behind the Koo App?

It was co-founded by entrepreneurs Aprameya Radhakrishna and Mayank Bidawatka back in March 2020. Thereafter, it took part and won the government’s Atmanirbhar App Innovation Challenge.

Prior to this, Radhakrishna had founded online cab booking service TaxiForSure, which was sold to Ola Cabs. To make it easier for the Indian audience, Koo has added support for regional languages such as Hindi, Bengali, Odia, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi and Assamese.

Which prominent accounts are there on Koo App?

Apart from Piyush Goyal, some of the other prominent users are union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan. Even official handles of Niti Aayog, MeitY, India Post, have been created on the Twitter-alternative app. Former cricketers Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble, too, have also joined the platform.

How to download Koo on Android and iPhone?

Koo is available on Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Android and iOS users can head over to the respective app stores and download the app.

(Edited by : Jomy)

First Published:Feb 10, 2021 6:06 PM IST