In 2017, walking past Trafalgar Square, I remember watching a group of kirtaniyas joyfully singing and dancing to devotional bhajans. The sight amused some passers-by and made others frown. To me, it captured how India was largely perceived at the time — an exotic land of “spirituality” and Bollywood glamour, where yoga mats and Hindi film songs were the most consistent ambassadors of its global image. Beyond that, India was seen as just another developing Commonwealth nation: its economy doing “alright” but not formidable, its political leadership visible but not yet commanding recognition, and its policymaking still recovering from the paralysis of the previous regime, with the new government only three years into its tenure.
Fast forward to 2025, and the conversations I now have with a close associate in the UK tell an entirely different story. Interestingly, the starting point remains the same: a group of devotees swaying down Oxford Street to Marble Arch during Janmashtami. But soon, the conversation shifts from bhajans to geopolitics: India’s decisive stance on tariffs, its refusal to be cajoled into binary choices between Asia and the West, and its pragmatic neutrality in continuing energy imports from “traditional partners” despite global criticism.
This shift in perception, from being shrugged off as a chaotic developing state to now commanding attention as an assertive, self-confident player on the global stage, made me reflect on what has changed. How did India, amidst global volatility and the fractious politics of our times, build the resilience to stand tall? The answer lies in the idea of Aatmanirbhar Bharat, a call that began as a campaign but has since become the real underpinning of India’s rise.
The groundwork for self-reliance has been systematically laid over the last decade. This transformation is neither accidental nor cosmetic, but structural and strategic. Consider how. Banking on its demographic dividend and vast market, and with a strong push through Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes, India has drawn global giants into its fold while energising domestic champions. Electronics, pharmaceuticals and textiles are no longer import-heavy vulnerabilities but fast emerging as indigenous strengths.
Nowhere is this shift more visible than in defence. India’s defence production reached an all-time high of Rs 1.27 lakh crore in FY 2023-24, a staggering 174 per cent rise since 2014, powered by the Make in India initiative. Even more telling is the export story: from being the world’s largest arms importer, India is now exporting defence equipment to more than 85 countries. Defence exports touched a record Rs 23,622 crore in FY 2024-25. Safe to say, we are no longer just consumers of the global security order but contributors shaping it.
On semiconductors, what eluded us in the 1980s is now taking shape, backed by billions in investment. The Semiconductor Mission is positioning India as a credible hub in the most strategic industry of the 21st century. Likewise, India has quietly emerged as the world’s third-largest bio-economy. The vaccine triumph during the pandemic was not a stroke of luck, but the fruit of years of investment in R&D, biotech, pharma and digital health infrastructure. That foundation is now propelling a new wave of bio-innovation.
India also hosts the world’s third-largest start-up ecosystem, where entrepreneurs are building solutions not just for India but for the globe. From AI to clean energy, innovation is powering the spirit of Aatmanirbhar Bharat. And self-reliance extends to the backbone of Bharat, its farmers. With digital marketplaces, precision farming and direct benefit transfers, they are less dependent on middlemen than ever before. Farmers today are producing not just for sustenance, but for global markets.
The timing could not be more fortuitous. The global geopolitical landscape, volatile as it is, provides India with a unique lever to prove its self-reliance and take the threats and challenges head-on. While Europe scrambles for alternatives, India has managed to secure affordable energy by balancing relations with multiple partners. This pragmatism has shielded our economy from shocks while reinforcing our sovereign decision-making.
As power dynamics shift, India has refused to be drawn into a zero-sum game. We speak to Washington and Moscow, to Beijing and Tokyo, to Riyadh and Tel Aviv. This multipolar diplomacy is not fence-sitting; it is the confidence of a nation that charts its own course.
With a digital economy contributing nearly 12 per cent of GDP and projected to touch 20 per cent by the end of the decade, India is no longer the weak link in global value chains. Instead, companies are de-risking from China by investing in India, a shift in strategy that aligns with our Aatmanirbhar ambitions. The Indo-Pacific tensions, cybersecurity threats and space competition have shown the importance of being technologically sovereign. India is not just buying platforms; it is designing, developing and exporting them.
The biggest transformation has been in governance. A nation once accused of policy paralysis has become a nation of policy power. Today, the effectiveness and scale of policies from Jan Dhan to UPI, from Aadhaar to GST, are felt not by millions but by over a billion people. This credibility at home strengthens credibility abroad.
Diplomacy, too, has mirrored this change. Where India once hesitated, today it speaks with unapologetic clarity. From cautious participation to unapologetic assertion, India now shapes rather than shadows global debates. On global platforms, in climate negotiations, trade and tariff talks, or conflict mediation, India’s voice carries both conviction and consequence, making it no longer a nation that can be nudged to the periphery or arm-twisted into conformity.
A decade ago, devotional singers on a London high street could have been dismissed as quaint symbols of India’s soft power, but today, the same sight sets off conversations on geopolitics, strategy, self-reliance and the rise of an economy that has surged past the UK and Japan. From symbolism to substance, from policy paralysis to policy power, from dependence to Aatmanirbharta, India’s journey has been a head-turner.
Yet, truth be told, there are still miles to go before we can genuinely claim the mantle of ‘Vishwaguru,’ rather than invoking it as a convenient narrative. The geopolitical landscape may be volatile, but for India, it is the perfect lever to assert its rise. For the first time in decades, the world sees India as a nation with economic might, technological ambition, and political will. Aatmanirbhar Bharat is no longer a campaign or a hashtag. It is the lived reality of a nation that has found its voice and is ready to use it. The task now is to stay the course — resilient, inclusive, and confident, as we build not just a self-reliant India, but a stronger, fairer world.
The writer is an alumna of IIMC, Delhi, and contributes as a consultant to the Government of India