The bae must be good in three departments – Tagging Memes, Tagging Memes and Tagging Memes. No, this is no exaggeration of our obsession with memes. In fact, thanks to the hilarious pictures, videos grabs, and GIFs turned memorable memes, 2017 was less sucky. Otherwise, it could have been another tough year. The timely, mushrooming funny memes ensured everyone has a good laugh on the social media throughout the year. So which ones do you think dominated the cyberspace? Was it Salt Bae or Yeh Bik Gayi Hai Gormint? Or was The Floor is Lava better than Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe? The list of best of memes in 2017 is extensive including few made at the expense of the showbiz superstars such as Priyanka Chopra, Shah Rukh Khan and Meryl Streep. Here’s a glance (along with their origin story) at memes that not only went crazy viral on WhatsApp and Twitter but also helped survive the year with a smile. Spread laughter.

1. Think About It

Picture Credits: Twitter

An image of actor Kayode Ewumi pointing to his temple and asking viewers to think discreetly went viral at the start of year. The funny screenshot is from the web series Hood Documentary, where Kayode played the character Reece Simpson aka Roll Safe. This image is used to generate meme on either to take potshots at one’s poor decision-making skills or admire quirky indigenous thinking. Think About It or Roll Safe meme was first noticed on January 22, after Twitter user @trapafasa posted a tweet along with the image reading - “‘men are trash’ tweets have gone down 70% due to the approach of February”. It amassed over 18,000 retweets and 17,000 likes.

2. Salt Bae

Picture Credits: Twitter

Salt Bae is none other than the flamboyant Turkish chef and butcher Nusret Gökçe whose talent of stylishly sprinkling salt broke the internet. On January 7, 2017, the hot chef uploaded a video of himself preparing a steak. The style in which he used his forearm to sprinkle salt on the meat earned him fans worldwide. In less than 48 hours, the footage gained over 2.4 million views and 8,700 comments. Much fanfare, we must admit.

3. White Guy Blinking

The hero of the White Guy Blinking meme is Drew Scanlon. His reaction gif is the perfect tool to express when feeling insulted or confused. This meme is perfect for your ‘Excuse Me?! Did you just blurt that out to me?’ Emotion.

4. Distracted Boyfriend

Picture Credits: Twitter

When photographer Antonion Guillem would have taken this image, he would have never imagined it to turn into a viral sensation. The Distracted Boyfriend meme is also known as Man Looking at Other Woman. The picture has a man walking with a woman, supposedly with his romantic partner. He is seen turning around to check out another woman as the lady accompanying gives a disapproving glare. This photo has been turned into a series of memes flooding the internet.

5. The Floor is Lava

Picture Credits: Twitter

Just like The Floor Is Lava / Hot Lava Game, The Floor is…meme talking about the action that one must avoid just like the lava. The meme-maker poked fun at everything from commitment, responsibilities, healthy eating, and so much more to poke fun at each other.

6. Meryl Streep Singing

An old image of Mery Streep from the 2015 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award went viral in March this year. The snap shows the legendary Hollywood actress cheering her fellow actress, Debbie Reynolds on receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award. The netizens used the picture to give a shout out to things they most believed in.

7. Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe

Picture Credits: Twitter

*Conversation between residents of Mumbai and Delhi* Mumbaikar: 2BHK, Delhiite: Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe. Late actor Amrish Puri’s dialogue from 1986 film Nagina became one of the biggest memes this year. The sinister sentence ‘Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe’ with the actor’s over-the-top villainous makeup is bound to give you creeps. Nevertheless, the dialogue has been such a hit on the social media that to the production of several merchandises.

8. Main Hoon Na

Picture Credits: Twitter

The craze for making new memes turned an emotional scene from Shah Rukh Khan’s hit movie to a butt of hilarious jokes. The movie in question is 2004’s Main Hoon Na. In the original scene, Shah Rukh as Ram is seen asking Zayed Khan who played the role of Laxman about his mother. To this, he replied, "Haan, maa toh sabke paas hoti hai!" (Yes, everyone has a mother). Giving an emotional feel to his answer, an orphan Ram is heard saying, "Sabke paas nahi hoti, Lakshman!" (Not everyone has it). Quite melodramatic, we must say. But the quirky out-of-box thinking netizens turned this scene into all sorts of jokes and they are quite funny.

9. Trump Draws

Picture Credits: Twitter

US President Donald Trump provides ample fodder for the meme generation. No, this is not the glorification of his only contribution to the world but rather a complaint. Because we have to find which is the best gaffe on Trump’s end can fit on this list. We zeroed on to his famous signing the executive orders during his controversial travel ban in February 2017. The meme also notably known as Trump Draws brought the creative side of netizens on the surface. The Trump Draws GIF shows Donald Trump showing off the signed executive orders to the camera. But it has been replaced with all sorts of kiddish as well as kinky stuff.

10. Yeh Bik Gayi Hai Gormint

In 2016 a video of an old lady in Karachi, Pakistan, going on an abusive rant against the government went viral. While the entire clip contained several gems falling out of her mouth, but the masterpiece was the statement - Yeh Bik Gayi Hai Gormint. The popularity of the phrase is such that not only netizens tweeting it to highlight there frustration subtly but also using it in their day-to-day lives.

11. Priyanka Chopra at Met Gala

Taking potshots at celebrities is the new trend on social media. With easy access to the internet, everyone is a self-proclaimed critic. One of the most famous memes involving a superstar was during this year’s Met Gala event in May. Bollywood actress and global icon, Priyanka Chopra’s Ralph Lauren trench coat gown with long train became a soft target of trolls. From being called ‘the baton of PM Modi’s Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ to drawing comparisons with tent, carpet, playground, Twitterati went all out. Nevertheless, PC like a good sport laughed her heart out at netizens’ creativities and even shared some of the best-photoshopped works on her Instagram account.

Memes do not just make us laugh out loud but help us express ourselves so much better. Have you ever given a thought in this direction? Memes are good as breathing. Trust us, when you are lonely, dead AF single, memes are the lifeline.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 25, 2017 12:17 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).