The term “manosphere” refers to a loose network of online forums, influencers and communities centred on masculinity and men’s issues. The debate gained renewed attention after the release of Adolescence, which sparked conversations about how online narratives can influence real-life attitudes.
According to Cosmopolitan, the manosphere is “a varied collection of websites, blogs, and online forums promoting masculinity, misogyny, and opposition to feminism”. There is no single leader or rulebook. Discussions unfold across platforms such as YouTube, 4chan and Reddit, as well as through independent content creators.
The Cambridge Dictionary describes it as a kind of “locker room” where men complain about what they see as injustices by women. While most participants are men, some women also align with its ideas.
The Different Groups
The manosphere includes several strands. Men’s rights activists, or MRAs, argue that men lack equal rights in areas such as family courts, false accusations and workplace safety. Some campaign for legal reform, while critics say others veer into anti-feminist rhetoric.
Another group consists of pickup artists, who offer advice on attracting women. Reporting by The Guardian and the BBC has linked certain tactics, such as “negging” and “peacocking”, to manipulation and objectification. Several high-profile figures in this space have faced bans or public criticism.
A more extreme faction is incels, short for “involuntary celibates”. As reported by the Times of India, incels believe they are romantically unsuccessful due to immutable traits such as looks or status. Terms like “Chad”, “black pill” and the “80/20 rule” form part of their vocabulary.
For perspective, Andrew Tate who’s a kickboxer-turned-manfluencer notorious for his misogynistic takes, and faces rape and human trafficking charges, is a prominent figure in the manosphere. He has millions of followers on social media. But he is not someone the black pill community reveres because he presents ideologies which push self-improvement to attain goals, even though they have misogynistic overtones.
The Indian Context
The discourse is not limited to the West. Indian media, including Mint, has reported on the spread of terms like “alpha”, “beta” and “sigma male” online. In the Indian manosphere, Elvish Yadav is seen as an equivalent of Andrew Tate. Such influencers are said to propagate ideas of sexism and hypermasculinity.
A men’s personality coach and content creator Sarthak Goel said, “Certain things in the environment told us that we needed to behave in a way that was harming us.
Like Shah Rukh Khan in his films— he is always chasing the girl, he wants to please her and be nice to her, he is a ladies man.
The term "manosphere" has come into our consciousness only recently, but some real-life instances also hint at pent-up aggression coming to a head with violence against women.
For instance, women who refused marriage proposals have been stabbed; thrown out of a moving car for rejecting a marriage proposal… and women have faced acid attacks from jilted lovers.
There have been several examples in Indian pop culture where tactics such as stalking, negging, persisting, and coercing have gotten heroes
Psychologists caution that isolation and lack of emotional support can make young people more vulnerable to such narratives. As conversations around the manosphere continue, the key question remains: how much can online communities shape real-world behaviour?
