The Soft Power of India: Basic Meanings and Expert Assessments

The article focuses on the main meanings of India’s modern foreign policy, which form the basis of the country’s soft power messages and appeal to its civilizational identity. It highlights the significance of India’s foreign policy vision, which is rooted in the idea of development and heritage, appealing to the harmonization of the past and the future.
Therefore, along with the government’s ambitious Viksit Bharat (Developed India) concept facing the future, the main foreign policy semantic guidelines and substantive elements of the soft power campaigns of modern India are formulated with references to the historical and cultural heritage, demonstrating not only the connection of times, but also the relevance of ancient messages to all humanity for the modern world.
8 experts specializing in various aspects of New Delhi’s foreign policy were interviewed in 2024. The article provides an overview of expert interviews on topics related to the perception of the concept of ‘soft power,’ as well as the semantic foundations and attitudes of Indian soft power, including opinions on the influence of the Hindutva ideology on the content and formats of Indian soft power campaigns after 2014.

References

Chaulia, S. Friends: India’s Closest Strategic Partners. New Delhi: Rupa Publications, 2024.
Emelianova, N. N. “Miagkoe obaianie Indii: preimushchestva i predely,” Perspektivy. Elektronnyi zhurnal, No. 2, 2016, pp. 75–87.
Joshi, S. “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: India’s Worldview,” Connecting through Culture: An Overview of India’s Soft Power Strengths, eds. V. Sahasrabuddhe, and S. Joshi. New Delhi: Wisdom Tree, 2022, pp. 199–208.
Kant, A., and Kapoor, A. The Elephant Moves: India’s New Place in the World. New Delhi: Penguin Random House India, 2024.
Malik, V. “Friend of the World (Vishwa Mitra): Expectations and Challenges,” Consortium of Indo-Pacific Researchers, December 1, 2023, URL: https://indopacificresearchers.org/2023/12/01/new-delhi-friend-of-the-world-vishwa-mitra-expectation...
Sahasrabuddhe, V., and Joshi, S. (eds.) Connecting through Culture: An Overview of India’s Soft Power Strengths. New Delhi: Wisdom Tree, 2022.