- By Chetna Shree
- Sat, 30 May 2026 10:16 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
- PM Modi now India's biggest global brand ambassador.
- India's international image transformed in 10-15 years.
- Increased pride in Indian identity, boosting tourism.
Union Culture and Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Saturday said India's image and identity abroad have undergone a major transformation over the last 10 to 15 years.
Speaking to news agency PTI, Shekhawat said that India's identity abroad was primarily only linked with Mahatma Gandhi earlier, but now Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the country's 'biggest brand ambassador'.
"If a visitor would tell anyone abroad that he or she was an Indian, the answer would be, "India! Oh, Mr Gandhi", Shekhawat said. He noted that the image and identity of India remained 'stuck with Gandhiji'.
The miniter further stated, "But today, and I say it with confidence, you can go to any country in the world... from the smallest Caribbean island to America, and from South Asia to West Asia, you can go anywhere, and if you tell someone that 'I am from India', you will see a bright smile on his face, and an exclamation, 'India! Oh, Mr Modi."
'India's Biggest Brand Ambassador Is Now PM': Shekhawat
When asked what was India's bigger brand ambassador, culture and tourism or Bollywood, was, Shekhawat said, "Nowadays, the biggest brand ambassador we have is our Prime Minister."
'Not A Political Reply'
Shekhawat, an MP from Rajasthan's Jodhpur, clarified that this was 'not a political reply.'
"Like we just said, till 10-15 years ago, Gandhiji was the brand ambassador of India for decades. And now Modiji is the brand ambassador of India. But the culture of India is the brand ambassador of India. And the culture of India is the identity of India in itself," he added.
He further claimed that earlier Indians would 'hesitate in calling themselves Indians' and would introduce themselves as Asian. "Then if you asked him where in Asia he was from, he would say that I am an Indian," the minister, adding that the way India was perceived in the world was 'somewhat lacking'.
He argued that while culture and heritage remain the essence of any nation, the image of the leader changes the image of the country abroad. When the image of the country improves, it inevitably boosts tourism and the attraction towards that country gets augmented.
From 'Incredible India' To 'Inevitable India'
The minister expressed confidence that foreign tourist arrivals in India will increase from the current 100 million to 1 billion by the year 2047.
"The performance of Indian embassies will now also be assessed on the basis of the number of tourists they send from that country to India," Shekhawat was quoted as saying.
Citing the examples of South Korea's 'K-pop' and Thailand's 'hospitality', he said that while India's global tourism identity has been 'Incredible India', we are now taking it to 'Inevitable India'.
(With Inputs From PTI)