21th April 2023, Mumbai: On Thursday, Elon Musk’s micro-blogging site Twitter removed the verified blue ticks from all accounts, including those of Indian celebrities such as Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, and Salman Khan, who were collateral damage.
The blue verified ticks were removed from the Twitter accounts of several Indian celebrities, including Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Ajay Devgn, Alia Bhatt, Akshay Kumar, Kajol, Madhuri Dixit, Anushka Sharma, and Anil Kapoor. It is worth noting that the only Twitter users with verified blue check marks are individuals who have subscribed to Twitter Blue, which costs USD 8 per month on the web and USD 11 per month via in-app payment on iOS and Android.
After Elon Musk announced changes to Twitter on Thursday, Indian cricketers Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were among the celebrities who lost their verified blue tick status. The changes also affected international celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Justin Bieber, Jon Stewart, and Ben Stiller.
It is worth noting that despite Elon Musk’s recent removal of blue ticks from several Twitter accounts, American football player LeBron James, who tweeted in March that he wouldn’t be paying the verification fee, still retains his verified status on the platform.
Twitter had previously stated that the verified checkmark status of accounts verified as notable before Elon Musk’s acquisition would be removed unless they have subscribed to Twitter Blue or the business-focused Twitter Verified Organizations plan.
In March, Twitter had announced via a tweet that it would begin phasing out its legacy verified program and removing legacy verified check marks starting April 1st. To maintain their blue checkmark on Twitter, individuals could register for Twitter Blue, the tweet further added.