Is India's Soft Power Ebbing Away ?

Around the world India has long been known for its #ancient #spirituality, #gandhi ’s non-violent struggle, extravagant weddings, cricketing prowess and glamorous Bollywood movies. All of this contributes to India’s global appeal and its attractiveness to outsiders, a phenomenon savvy #foreignpolicy analysts label as India’s “#softpower Power”.
In recent decades, India has struggled to keep up with the inexorable growth in economic and military might of its arch-rival #china . This has drawn attention to the one area where India might be better positioned to compete with its northern neighbour, that is in #cultural and #moral influence or soft power.
Many observers have noted a marked increase in India's soft power under the Modi government, thanks in part to his push for greater engagement with #indiandiaspora , successful #vaccinediplomacy , various overseas disaster relief and rescue operations, reclaiming of #yoga through #internationalyogaday among other initiatives and multi-faceted cooperation with US, Japan and Australia under the #quad framework. They point to the prime minister’s much-publicised international tours and the grand state receptions in foreign capitals as proof of India’s growing importance.
However, this rosy outlook seems to be contradicted by India’s precipitous fall in the Global #softpower Index as reported by Brand Finance. It concurs with steep falls for India in other key metrics published around the world including UN’s Human Development Index, Economist’s Democracy Index, RSF’s Press Freedom Index and WEF’s Gender Gap Index. All of these points to an entirely different story - India’s moral standing is waning in the eyes of the world.
Therefore we are faced with a sharp dichotomy of views on India’s soft power. What exactly is the reality here? Is India’s soft power ebbing away?
Watch Full Session - • Is India's Soft Power ...

[@pradyumn2692]

I thought u would give logical reasons but instead u give the same rotten Economic Times article or some useless global ranking. The fact that US still wants India as an ally inspite of indirectly supporting Russia in Ukraine war tells lot. NGOs and other talkers can go take a hike.

[@intellectuallycurious6443]

US also needs Saudi Arabia to tackle Iran despite Human Rights watchers worldover denouncing the regime. Presumably in your view that means Saudi Arabia wields a lot of Soft Power too.

[@akshatbhardwaj7163]

@@intellectuallycurious6443 yes, Saudi Arabia holds immense and unparalleled soft power in the Muslim world especially among Arab Muslim countries. Never thought one would even question the soft power of Saudi Arabia, barring a few countries it ranks among the highest in the world.

[@rishichatterjee5741]

What has India's supposed "soft power" helped us gain from other countries when in negotiations with them? Any trade deals? Any tech exchanges? Any military break throughs? Or infrastructural exchanges?
Hope the media, narrative builders and the political class in this country grows out of this stupid obsession with "soft power". It's just a feel good talking point, that's it and nothing else 🙂