The Reelocene Epoch: Digital Mimesis and the Erasure of Cultural Idiom in Kashmir
Ghulam Mohammad Khan
Dr. Ghulam Mohammad Khan, Department of English Literature, HKM Government Degree College Bandipora, J&K, Bandipora, Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir, India.
Manuscript received on 07 October 2025 | First Revised Manuscript received on 10 October 2025 | Second Revised Manuscript received on 22 February 2026 | Manuscript Accepted on 15 March 2025 | Manuscript published on 30 March 2026 | PP: 38-44 | Volume-5 Issue-3, March 2026 | Retrieval Number: 100.1/ijssl.B121905021225 | DOI: 10.54105/ijssl.B1219.05030326
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© The Authors. Published by Lattice Science Publication (LSP). This is an open-access article under the CC-BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Abstract: This study presents the concept of the Reelocene epoch, characterised by excessive consumption of short-form videos, or reels, on popular platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, with a primary focus on Kashmir. The research examines how local youth, observed in educational settings, are captivated by visual media without recognising its infectious influence on local culture and identity formation. This Reelocene commodifies culture, ruptures the localised value system, and incorporates alien cultural elements that render vulgarity and obscenity aesthetically pleasing. The study uses the conceptual frameworks of cultural capital (Bourdieu) and hyperreality (Baudrillard). The research also examines the capacity of reels to engage teenagers effectively while standardising their use as a factor in cultural exclusion and inclusion. The preference for the influencer or celebrity’s verbal expressions, style, and tastes, regarded as culturally superior, contrasts sharply with the local cultural norms, perceived as inferior, and is examined in detail through the observed behaviour of participating students. The study ultimately argues that Reelocene not only endangers culture but also supplants it with its own norms, language, and regulations, posing a threat to the local context.
Keywords: Digital Colonialism, Cultural Homogenisation, Algorithmic Culture, Short-Form Video, Koshur, Hyperreality, Identity Performance, Linguistic Erasure, Social Media Ethnography.
Scope of the Article: Sociology