OUR NATION NEEDS A FOREIGN "STRATEGY" NOT 'POLICY'......

Image Credits: Google Images under "Creative Commons License"

I actually put down the following view points of mine together in writing a few weeks back but did not feel like posting it on my blog as I did not want to sound like a hard core Narendra Modi fan who writes positive things about him irrespective of what he does. Over the last 2 weeks, I asked myself a question if that was indeed true and whether I really was a hard core Modi fan? After much mulling the answer was a loud and clear “NO”. I have always been fascinated by strong, visionary and hands-on leaders all my life who are far sighted and have the courage to do what they feel is right for their nation or corporate or any endeavour they lead. What usually added to my fascination was their conviction to stand up for their beliefs and go ahead with what they thought was good for their nation or corporate despite heavy opposition. And in some cases, I also believe that their vision truly makes sense from a strategic stand point and that the actions taken by them are perfectly aligned to their vision. Initially the actions look like the pieces of a Jigsaw puzzle and I really cannot make out anything. But when I happen to get the first glimpse of the potential big picture or even start to believe the various small  pieces are beginning to fit together, that is the moment when I start getting a sense of conviction and belief in the leader. This has been true for even the leaders in the corporate field like Jack Welch, Lou Gerstner, John Chambers, Elon Musk, Padmasree Warrior,  Sheryl Sandberg, Nandan Nilekani, Francisco D’Souza or management gurus like Peter Drucker, Michael Porter, C K Prahalad. I take time to build trust, respect and conviction in any leader and usually do it on the basis of available facts and  data points….

Let me take the example of India’s foreign policy as example and illustrate as to  why I think our Prime Minister has the right vision and is also taking the steps in that direction… 

Foreign Policy is a very critical aspect that determines a Nation’s progress on every front and also plays a vital role in our ability to defend the sovereignty of our nation as well as gain more respect in the comity of nations over the long term. I think the right word to use is “Foreign Strategy” as that is what it exactly is. Let’s look at China as a case in point. Over the years China has been discreetly doing the following things which may not make sense in isolation but probably make a lot of sense when looked at holistically. They have invested a lot of money and expertise  in Africa starting as long as 7-8 years ago and today they are the largest investor in that market and the Chinese have a large number of manufacturing plants spread across various countries in Africa, producing a variety of goods for exports from Africa, create huge number of jobs in the local markets, improve standard of living of the people in Africa as a by-product of job creation, increase the GDP of those countries, create new domestic markets in Africa which will drive domestic production and the demands for the Chinese products and so on… What do the Chinese get in return for all this? They get access to cheap raw materials from the resource rich Africa, access to cheap labour which is becoming a scarcity in China, access to new markets in Africa which will be very huge in future with the first mover advantage and most of all the loyalty and gratitude from the leaders of the African nations which have immensely been benefitted in terms of economic growth as a result of Chinese investments. The Chinese will get incredible economic benefits in future from the huge African market of 1 Billion people which has been growing very rapidly and also at the same time ensure that the fate of African economy is inextricably linked to China so that they have no option but to support China on diplomatic front as well as continue to give China the “Most Favoured Nation” status when it comes to trade and industry or terms of investments in future….This is “Strategy” of a nation in action…Africa has become a sophisticated and modern day version of a “colony” to China just as India had become to the British in 1600s thru’ the East India Company  “trade route”….Sounds very familiar…Isn’t it? 

And we have also seen a similar pattern albeit not to that extent, in the manner China has shifted its investments to Europe and started preferring it as their destination over the U.S. This started at the time when the Euro crisis was at its peak and when very few global investors (perhaps NO other global investors at all)  were willing to invest in Europe as its economy was in turmoil. That's when the Chinese made an entry into Europe with best deals and the Europeans lapped it up with gratitude as China was their only saviour during their darkest times. China was also able to get the best possible deals like land, raw materials, resources and tax breaks  etc from the grateful European nations at throw away prices as they desperately needed the Chinese investments which would create local jobs and give a boost to the local economies. Today it is showing up in the way the trade patterns of China or investments by China in Europe increased significantly over the last 5-6 years and simultaneously reduced the dependence on the Chinese  trade with the U.S. significantly. It is also showing up in the way a few of the European nations are unwilling to talk in favour of the U.S. when it comes to topics related to China. Many European nations have also started to realise that their economic fates are getting linked to that of China and also the sad reality that there is probably no way out….And then we hear recently about China’s increasingly aggressive behaviour on the military front in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean area where  they are gradually increasing their naval presence and also building ‘Artificial Islands’ in the middle of the sea with Airstrips and military bases….

One would be extremely naïve to believe that the 3 events mentioned above and have been slowly happening over the years with out a long term vision, a top notch strategy to accomplish that vision, a detailed action plan covering  operational details and timelines – all these artefacts clearly outlined and signed off by the leadership of China many years ago… And no one really knows what China’s vision is or what is it they are actually looking to achieve? 

Amidst all this, I am really surprised when even educated people in our country complain about the frequent foreign trips made by our Prime Minister. It is very sad to see our compatriots not realising the significance of Foreign Affairs and Strategic alliances with foreign nations in the over all scheme of our nation's growth and development on all fronts. 

Let me explain this with a parallel. When a CEO of an MNC travels 20 days a month to meet the top executives of key clients or establish relationships with prospective clients or for negotiating critical multi million dollar deals personally, the entire corporate world believes that it is the mark of a true leader who is indeed playing the most strategic role in the company and is admirably hands on as well. Such a CEO becomes a role model for being able to forge deals and for making the otherwise impossible things happen by sheer strength of his personal connects and charisma. 

Foreign Affairs is a very critical and arguably the most strategic and complex task for a nation. A lot of people in our country do not realize as to why the 'Secretary of State' is the most coveted and strategic role in the U.S. after the President. This very simple fact illustrates at one stroke as to how important foreign relations is for a nation even if it is the most powerful country in the world. It is extremely difficult to carry out tectonic shifts and realignment of direction or even convince the foreign nations to shift or re-align their existing policies, strategic partnerships, tie-ups and alliances etc in favor of our nation. These strategic alliances and relationships would have been formed over several decades and impressing upon the foreign nations to move over to our side is an extremely uphill task.

 Imagine trying to win over a client who has been working with a well entrenched competitor and impressing the client to partner with us by giving them rationale and showing convincing differentiators or strengths that will make them overlook the decades of partnership with our competitor who has been performing well and shifting their business to us. And let's remember that for such strategic change in alignments to happen, the CEO of the firm has to be physically present at the client location and drive negotiations himself and also be able to take certain critical decisions on the spot. And in the context of a nation, it is best if the Prime Minister or External Affairs Minister drives such conversations from the front and sitting in the office of the head of the foreign nation with whom we want to establish strategic partnership with. A CEO of an MNC drives some of the most critical deals or most strategic tie ups from the front and perhaps with full time involvement  for those few days because he knows that the goal will not be reached unless he leads from the front. I believe this is what our Prime Minister is exactly doing. Any executive playing a  leadership role in a corporate will very well understand that frequent international trips for short durations even if it means traveling in the First Class cabin of an Aircraft or staying in a top end luxury hotels is a very BIG PAIN indeed and is something they would love to avoid given an option. One needs to come out of the typical Indian mindset that traveling abroad is essentially for entertainment or relaxation or for enjoying luxurious foreign hospitality and delicious food. Ask any corporate executive who covers 3 different countries across the world within a week for serious business meetings and he would explain how it feels…..

One striking aspect in all the visits made by our Prime Minister is in the choice of the gift he chooses to give the leader of the nation that is hosting him. Every gift is very carefully chosen keeping in mind the mindset and interests  of that particular leader. A lot of research is done by the PMO to arrive at the custom gift each of the leaders. If one looks at the gifts given in the last few months to the leaders of the nations that he visited and the rationale for the same, one would instantly realise that to  the eyes of the recipient the gift would appear as very thoughtful and the gesture would be seen as that of showing great concern, genuineness and warmth. These are gifts that are not expensive at all but indeed very dear to these leaders’ hearts from an emotional and personal interest stand point and these gifts pertain to  aspects  that are very personal, most touching and extremely valued in their hearts. This is indeed a time tested gifting practice that some of the most successful CEOs and top sales leaders adopt and often these trigger the beginning of a long term and highly strategic  relationships between the 2 firms. 

As a nation we have NOT done a great job over the last few decades primarily because we hesitated in taking sides and always attempted to please every one all the time. This approach will never yield best results for any nation and we need to clearly decide and choose as to our long term and strategic partners are and who our short term or tactical partners are and make strategic partnership plans accordingly. This is what any Fortune 100 company would ideally do.  Isn’t it?

We also need to understand and appreciate that the outcomes and results of the diplomatic efforts by our leaders will not be visible immediately and it will take its own gestation period. Also in most cases the nature of diplomatic wins or the extent of strategic agreements or decisions made cannot be made public and will probably be never known to the general public. Perhaps the only way to see tectonic shifts happening is by noticing subtle signs or indirectly inferring based on certain behaviors exhibited on other seemingly unrelated fronts.

I will quickly mention some events on the foreign affairs front over the last 6-9 months and would like you to draw your own inferences on the possible outcomes:

1. The Indian PM visits the U.S. on the invitation of the President of the U.S. and makes a huge impression among the U.S. politicians with his epochal Madison Square Garden meeting with Indian diaspora. Many expected announcements are made on the political and economic affairs side by both nations including large investments etc. After a few days there is a low key announcement that U.S. has lifted the decades old sanctions on India being able to procure supplies needed  for civilian nuclear use

2. The President of SRI LANKA visits India as his maiden foreign visit after being elected as the new President. CIA mentioned in a side note about RAW playing a key and decisive role in that election which was denied by India and Sri Lanka

3. In a seemingly unconnected incident Sri Lanka chooses India as its strategic partner for a large nation building project and this was perhaps a last moment change from its initial decision that was in favor of a partnership with China

4. Our PM visits Australia, negotiates personally with their leaders and manages to close an agreement with them to become long term suppliers of nuclear fuel to India. This is  in addition to good progress made on investments front

5. The Canadian PM went out of his way to receive our PM breaking the usual protocols. The Canadian First Lady was dressed in a traditional Indian Saree while welcoming our PM which was probably an exceptionally  friendly gesture atleast one that I never heard of before in any country. In the whirlwind tour across Canada by both the PMs together, the Canadian PM for the first time in history traveled along with the Indian PM in Air India One instead of the usual Royal Canadian Air force Jet. Based on the earlier  U.S. decision to lift sanctions in the nuclear arena, the Canadians happily agree to supply Uranium to India on a long term basis

6. Our PM talks to King Salman of Saudi Arabia personally over phone and gets his buy in for the dare devil evacuation operation launched by India for its citizens in Yemen. Countries like the U.S. and UK post a note at their embassies in Yemen that their nationals should contact Indian Embassy in Yemen for evacuation or rescue related matters. 

7. Our PM was received warmly by the French President as a state guest. He personally negotiated the price of Rafael Jets and other Defence equipment to be procured by the Indian Airforce and also laid the foundations for the French Defence companies to make investments in India under ‘Make in India’ drive

8. Similar stories of success and several sales pitches on the India growth story made in countries like Germany, UK, Japan and others which were quite well received 

9. In an unprecedented and probably most unexpected manner, our PM makes it a point to visit the leaders of countries like Vietnam, Mongolia, South Korea and a few other Indian Ocean nations in addition to Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal where he received a standing ovation from the local leadership in response to the his views on development of nations and how we can work together with those nations. As I write this he is visiting the former Russian republics and trying to personally establish ties with them...

10. Our PM visits China to expand relations although it is known that it is our biggest adversary and that it will not be so easy to build relations. In a bid to attract Chinese investors in India and knowing that the Chinese media is controlled by the government, our PM did a very innovative thing by opening an account on the Chinese equivalent of Twitter that has incredibly huge user base in China and started communicating with the Chinese citizens directly,  starting this endeavor as early as one week before his scheduled  trip to China and all thru’ the duration of his  stay in China.

Let me now mention a few notable strategic fall outs from these endeavors:

1. The relationship between India and U.S. is at its peak now and both nations fully realize their strategic interdependence in the wake of potential threat from China and are closely working together on multiple fronts. For the Time 100 most influential people in the world list which also has 8-9 of the leading world national leaders,  Indian PM is the only person  for whom Obama has written a personal citation

2. India has used  a ‘necklace of pearls’ strategy and established good relationships in the ASEAN region with countries like Australia, Vietnam, South Korea, Mongolia, Japan and other Indian Ocean Island nations who now show a very clear albeit subtly visible inclination towards India vis. a vis. China. India has boldly decided to go ahead with the oil exploration in South China Sea in collaboration with Vietnam, without  paying heed to unwarranted threats from China to stay away. This decision was pending for the last few years due to lack of firmness or clarity on our side

3. In the geographical  neighborhood or SAARC nations, India has succeeded in building strong relationships  with Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan which clearly places  it in  a dominant position with a lot of  respect and influence in the region. Position of leadership on the regional stage is the first step to that on the global stage.

4. Over the years India had become too dependent on Russia for supplies of nuclear fuel and all varieties of Defence equipment and perhaps reached a stage where we are at the mercy of Russia for these supplies and this was getting evident. Reducing the bargaining power of supplier and  reducing  dependence on a single source by signing up with new suppliers of the above materials and equipment such as Israel, France, Canada,  South Korea, Australia and of course the U.S.  is indeed a breakthrough of strategic nature. 

5. A notable aspect of the visits made by our Prime Minister to foreign nations is his great ability to engage the Indian diaspora and connect with them at a personal level. No other world leader would have received such a rousing reception from the people of his nation settled abroad, which is so evident and also on such a large scale. This infact  made the local political leaders in the foreign nations aware of the popularity and support for the PM in India thereby boosting their confidence immensely on India’s stable government and its decisiveness.

6. And last but not the least. If might be a  surprise to us that our PM is visiting small or what are perceived as non strategic nations like Mongolia, Uzbekistan and perhaps atleast a dozen others which are not even in the radar of any of the developed countries which typically ignore them and do not even bother about them. And to further add to the mystery, he is also giving them financial grants and offering technological or infrastructure support. The way I see it:, to be seen a leader in the comity of world, one must have loyal follower base… And what other better strategy can one think of other than what is being adopted by our Prime Minister… Imagine the way the leaders of these small and often ignored nations will feel when the Prime Minister of the World’s largest democracy which is also an emerging technology leader personally takes the pain of travelling over to their country and extending the hand of friendship and cooperation…. They will be totally swept off their feet and will back India unconditionally in global forums…

In a nutshell foreign affairs policies and strength of relationships/partnerships with other nations is a key for driving foreign investments to India. It is impossible to take up the activities on fronts such as education, health and nutrition, infrastructure development, generating adequate employment, food security, increasing standard of living etc which would help boost per capita income and GDP growth rate of our economy, independently in our own. It is imperative that we are able to attract significant amount of foreign investment to our country to be able to boost the growth in sectors like Manufacturing, Infrastructure, Retail, Defence etc which will create adequate jobs for our youth.

The most logical way of making it happen is to make the world aware of India’s potential, support available from Indian government in terms of policies and resources, give a strategic and  long term vision and  view of India’s plans for economic growth and development and finally talk about why should they choose India over other countries in the world to make their investments. This is best done by the nation’s leadership led by the PM himself visiting the nations which have potential to invest and meeting the nation’s leaders, top executives of MNCs, organise seminars and marketing campaigns, industry or trade  associations etc and enlisting their support by convincing or assuring them about the India Story. Also we need to keep in mind that support of the foreign governments go a long way in ensuring that investments happen. That is another task which our PM performed very effectively by forging strategic partnerships at a nation to nation level on defence,  foreign affairs, economy and other fronts.

In my opinion this is the role that a Prime Minister of a nation should be playing that includes strategic policy formulation on vital matters of national importance, keeping a tab on nation's finances and economy, monitoring the execution and implementation periodically, personally being involved in matters of strategic importance such as defence and foreign affairs, creating an FDI funnel by creating confidence both in the foreign national leaders and investors etc. the tactical decisions and operational issues and implementation will any way be handled by the Union Ministers with the support of the top bureaucrats and in conjunction with the state governments. It is enough if the PM reviews the progress on a periodic basis. 

The government over the last decade has been in a state of policy paralysis and indecision which is also reflected in the bureaucratic tendency to keep decisions pending under the fear of being targeted by agencies like CAG or CBI for the judgmental errors in  decisions they make on a daily basis. Our PM has streamlined the execution engine by handpicking  the bureaucrats based purely on merit and setting up a centralised clearance and approval mechanism under the purview of the PMO which helps guidance  or support to  the bureaucrats across ministries to enable a  faster decision making process. Besides the working style of our PM wherein he reaches out to bureaucrats directly on some matters creates a direct connection with them that helps him keep a tab on their performance and make quick changes in cases of non performance. The empowerment and autonomy given to Top bureaucrats and Defence Top guns within the overall policy framework defined by him also goes a long way in boosting their morale and self esteem. And knowing that they have a leader to back them up in times of difficulty gives them immense confidence to execute at their best levels of performance which is indeed a sea change from the earlier years. 

THE RIGHT LEADER in the RIGHT ROLE at the RIGHT TIME....

Indian Army in action during an 'Ambush'
Source: Google Images

There are TWO very simple sets of traits that I have always truly admired in a LEADER: the first set of traits covers the personal aspect and is about genuine humility, being truly down to earth and having absolutely no airs; the second set covers the professional aspect and is about providing a clear and firm direction to the team amidst a dynamic environment, meticulously monitoring progress and tracking key actions to closure, ability to make quick and firm decisions with complete conviction, provide unequivocal support to the team and earn their unwavering trust. SUCCESS is all about doing COMMON things UNCOMMONLY well and there is no secret sauce to it. And true leaders simply adhere to this adage. While there are many successful leaders, I have a special and deep sense of respect and admiration for leaders who are a rare blend of the traits that I mentioned above.

The first image that usually comes to my mind when I think of ‘leadership’ is that of the corporate world and CEOs who made a huge impact to the world of business in terms of either their innovative strategies and visionary thinking; audacious or unique leadership styles; transforming or radically realigning a firm’s core business; complete turnaround of a sick firm and so on. Some of my top favorites over the years include the likes of Jack Welch, Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, John Chambers, Dhirubhai Ambani, Ratan Tata and N R Narayana Murthy. It is not necessary that all these leaders exactly fit the mold of the leadership style or have all the traits that I mentioned at the beginning. These are the leaders who inspired me for different reasons and left an indelible mark in my mind. While I was certainly cognizant that many great leaders also existed outside the corporate world in myriad fields such as government, politics, military, education, economics, fundamental research, medicine etc.; those leaders would not usually create a significant impression on  my mind perhaps owing to the way it has been conditioned over the years.

After exploring for leadership role models outside the corporate world for more than 2 years, Manohar Parrikar was one man whom I finally zeroed in on. I believe that he personifies most of the traits that I mentioned above and is indeed an embodiment of authentic leadership. For starters, Manohar Parrikar is the Union Minister for Defence Affairs, Government of India which means that he is at the helm of the Indian Armed Forces and has the bottom-line for both: formulating strategic, tactical and operational plans or policies on all defence related matters and ensuring their effective execution by providing leadership, essential wherewithal and support in form of legislative measures or budgets needed for the success of the same.

Around 2 years ago when I started my search for role models of strong leaders outside the corporate world, an  IIT graduate had just become the Chief Minister of an Indian state, in the aftermath of an anti-corruption movement that rocked the country following which, a new political party founded by him won the elections in that state. This was an epochal event in Indian history which marked the dawning of a new political era reflecting the changed mind sets and expectations of the Indian people. It was also widely celebrated by people across the country as well as the Indian diaspora in various countries. India did not have a great history of well-educated men and women joining politics and winning elections and hence this event attained a lot of significance. I was very impressed with this profile of leadership and believed that this has indeed sown the seeds for the future generation of Indian political leaders.

The fact that an IIT graduate became the Chief Minister of an Indian state created waves among the educated elite in India and encouraged many of them to join politics. Another striking thing about him which was widely being discussed in the media and citizens across the country was his humility and austerity. The new Chief Minister insisted on using his own vehicle and stayed at a modest government accommodation not befitting a Chief Minister of an Indian state. This style of functioning was unheard of in India, where the post of a Chief Minister brought with it all the accompaniments of a life style filled with grandeur and royalty. No wonder the Indian press went gaga about the Chief Minister with an IIT background who was also an embodiment of austerity and humility. The press indeed spared no efforts to ensure the person who had changed the history of Indian politics was given maximum possible coverage in across all types of media spanning across the length and breadth of the country. I was by now completely hooked on to this new leadership style. The only thing that worried me was the lack of administrative experience or even subject matter expertise in the fields related to executive governance, policy making and legislative affairs. For even the greatest strategy or plan to succeed, it needs to be supported up by an aggressive execution engine that is well oiled with experience. 

"This was a clear weak point that I felt could one day become the Achilles heel".

At that point of time, I happened to read an article in a remote corner of a news magazine with a contrarian perspective vis. a vis. the view in the national media. The article expressed a view that probably national media was placing an undue and even unwarranted emphasis on the new Chief Minister, his educational background and for that matter even austerity. And then it went on to talk about a person called Manohar Parrikar. I had never heard Parrikar’s name before, wondered what he had to do with the new Chief Minister and thus continued reading the article. I discovered that Manohar Parrikar was the Chief Minister of a western Indian state and was in that post for the last 7 years. He was a very simple and down to earth person who maintained a very simple and private life style, preferred to stay in a middle class house that he owned, never wanted media attention and enjoyed his privacy. He was loved and respected by the people of his state as he was not only extremely honest and sincere but also ensured that he got things done. A lot of development on many fronts had happened in that state which did not receive much coverage in the media as the leader of that state genuinely wanted to maintain a simple and low profile. Manohar Parrikar believed that his job was only to ensure the people of his state actually benefited from the welfare and development schemes and did not bother much about publicity.

As I went further down, I also learnt that Manohar Parrikar was an engineering graduate from an institute in a neighboring state called IIT, Bombay and that another gentleman by the name Nandan Nilekani was his classmate at that prestigious institute. Once I finished reading that article I felt very happy to hear about a truly humble, genuinely down to earth and a very well educated leader who also ensured that the goods were indeed delivered. I decided to keep a close watch on this gentleman named Manohar Parrikar.

The 2014 General Elections in India resulted in Modi Administration being swept to power with a huge majority.  That was a time when the eyes of the entire world were on India and how it would move ahead under the new administration. The new Administration triggered a few tectonic shifts in the overall direction as well as priorities of the nation. Foreign Policy and Defence Policy were two areas that were long due for an overhaul and these were actually very pivotal as these would play a key role albeit indirectly in: securing the economic future of the nation, maintaining an equilibrium and stability in South Asia, furthering ties with like-minded nations, increasing our bargaining power in the comity of nations, enhance our visibility and gaining respect in the international fora, encouraging foreign investment and technology transfer in critical areas etc.

When the new administration took over in May, 2014, the Indian Armed forces  were battling on many fronts against all odds despite challenges such as outdated equipment, inadequate financial resources and most importantly absence of a clear direction, definitive strategy and supporting policies from a government afflicted by severe policy paralysis and extremely slow decision making.  The new administration wanted to make a significant impact and changes in this area and this needed a very strong leader, with rich leadership experience in government together with an established and proven track record in delivering results, at the helm of the Indian Defence Ministry. Manohar Parrikar was appointed as the new Union Minister for Defence Affairs.

Manohar Parrikar knew that as the first step, morale of the troops on the ground had to be improved; their self-respect and honour increased multi fold. He took quick decisions pertaining to the financial resources and budgetary allocations needed for their welfare. Some of the initial gestures, such as asking the officers in uniform not to clap in response to his address as it would undermine their honour or asking the local armed forces officers not to receive him at the Airport, had a cascading effect down the chain. These gestures might appear symbolic but did have a significant impact on the honour and self-esteem of the Indian armed forces. Parrikar also took a very firm and decisive stand on the way the troops on the border out posts should react to foreign incursions and unprovoked firing which had been a common feature for several decades along the International Border and Line of Control. He made it very clear that India cannot afford to lose even a single soldier on the war front due to poor policies or weak response or slow decision making and steps were immediately taken to shift the locus of decision making closest to the battle field. He also assured the troops that he was completely behind them and he would assume complete responsibility and support them in the decisions taken by them in the interest of the nation. This goes a long way to improve the morale of the troops on the ground whose sacrifices over the years have kept our nation intact. I do not recollect any leader at the helm of the Indian Defence Ministry who clearly and firmly voiced his opinions on issues that really mattered in the battle field, in the real line of fire and also followed them up with concrete actions.

From what I understand, the troops on the border have had to exercise a lot of restraint when provoked by the enemy even till today. The Border Outposts and even the Regional Army Commanders many a time had to consult and seek the opinion of the decision makers at the Defence Ministry in New Delhi to decide on the extent of retaliation they could resort to even if it meant that precious lives were lost during the time taken by the decision making process. This placed our troops at an uneven footing as they had to abide by a very restrictive set of rigid rules and processes whereas the enemy did not have to abide by any rules or processes whatsoever. It was refreshing for the nation to see a lot of tweets in the last few weeks from the Border Security Force and Indian Army officers that the unequivocal support and quick decision making by the new administration has greatly boosted the morale of the troops manning the border and that this was never seen or experienced in the earlier years.

Traditionally ever since the Nehruvian days, India has maintained a “gentlemanly” attitude towards our aggressors. India has always been very soft with its aggressors and let them off scot-free without significant punitive actions. All through its history, India has never attacked a foreign nation. And when attacked by foreign nations, we defended our country very well and were successful in driving away the foreign troops. However we never leveraged our position of dominance vis. a vis. our enemy, which was usually the case towards the last stages of the war, to teach them a lesson so that they will never repeat their misadventures. It was our standard approach to seek UN intervention which usually led to diplomatic discussions and negotiations to resolve the issue on EQUAL terms and at times it even meant compromises from our side.  

 “We never took advantage of our dominant position in the war to negotiate from a position of superiority and benefit from that. We stuck to the tenets of the international law when the enemies were openly disregarding them even if it meant that it demoralized our troops and placed them at an uneven footing”.

In some of the earlier wars involving our neighbors, Indian Armed forces occupied vast swathes of enemy territory during the war which made the enemy to ultimately surrender and raise the 'white flag' fearing imminent defeat. Such occasions could have been utilized for driving a hard bargain on contentious and long pending issues with neighbors and resolving them permanently and for good. But the “gentlemen” that we were, we usually preferred to follow all the applicable protocols laid out by the International Law down to the last comma or semi-colon and always sought to negotiate on equal terms.

 “I am not at all trying to even remotely suggest that war mongering is good for the country or that we should adopt a hawkish attitude towards others”. I would never suggest that!! The point I am trying to make here is that "we are actually at the other extreme end and we need to swing the pendulum atleast to the middle". 

Let's look at a case in point. In the 1971 war, the Indian army was in a very dominant position of strength and the enemy was completely obliterated. India was clearly and certainly on a high ground both morally and militarily. It was a victory like never before and no one could even dare to question Indian superiority even for the sake of argument. The liberation of the territories of what was then called as East Pakistan and subsequent birth of Bangladesh was completely and unquestionably attributable to India’s might. And India naturally wielded a lot of power and influence over the liberated territory not only due to its role in the war but also because of the physical presence of its armed forces on that territory. It was a known fact that India had boundary related issues with East Pakistan in those days and the least we could have done is to have resolved them using our position of superiority and strength, closing them once and for all. We never chose to go along that path in 1971. And it was only last month that these issues got resolved after negotiations on equal terms, a good 44 years after the war for liberation of Bangladesh ended.

While we do not need to be a bully, we also need not be humble, soft and well-mannered gentlemen who always try to please others. Unfortunately the world only recognizes power and might, either economic or military or both. And if we have to be respected by the outside word, we as a nation should  strongly assert our self and let the world know by our actions in clear and no uncertain terms that we mean business and that we will not tolerate any attempt to attack our sovereignty, individuality or self-esteem. 

 “There are inextricable linkages between fear, respect and deterrence. Fear often leads to respect or deterrence or both”.  

The world should know in unequivocal terms that India is not a nation that anyone can take for granted or mess with either politically or economically or even militarily. And for this to happen we need to demonstrate by real deeds and actions on all fronts. It does not help to merely repeat what we have been saying for years. As a nation we need to adopt a “strategic” approach to our Defence and External Affairs. We have been stuck in a “reactive”, “wait and watch” or even “sitting on the fence” mode over the last several decades. This approach is at best tactical and usually operational in nature. Unless we carry out a complete makeover embracing the “strategic” mode in the critical areas such as Defence and External Affairs, the future of our nation will remain uncertain on all fronts. 

Our leaders should treat our country the way a CEO treats his firm in the corporate world and should clearly delineate the nation's strategy covering the following aspects at the minimum=>

TOP LEVEL STRATEGY

1.    What is the ‘vision’ for our nation on Defence and External Affairs front?

2.    What is the core philosophy or ideology that drives this vision and the policies that fall out from this vision?

3.    What role and influence do we envisage for our nation on the world and regional stages?

4.    Where do we aspire to see our nation going forward on these fronts in 5 years, 10 years and 20 years?

5.    What are the strategic defence plans to address the existing threats or potential threats that could occur to us in future? How do we prevent or neutralize their occurrence?

6.    What are the various permutations and combinations that could happen in the international defence alliance formations in response to a threat being realized and how do we brace up for the different scenarios or possibilities? What is our best bet and response for each possibility?

7.    How do we want the rest of the world to perceive our nation? What should our national brand or identity reflect to the outside world?

8.    Where do we want our nation to stand from an economic, diplomatic and military stand point vis. a vis. the comity of nations on the world stage and regional stage?

DRILL DOWN STRATEGY

1.    What is our stand regarding the formation of strategic partnerships and deep relationships with nations whose support we direly need to achieve our vision?

2.    Do we completely align with one or two leading powers fully and unambiguously on all fronts or do we have a tiered relationship or partnership model comprising of a basket of closely knit relationships whose nature is based on the strategic importance of each specific nation? 

3.    What is the nature of support that we will get from our partners on various fronts in the face of an external threat? How reliable is the partner and what is his level of commitment to us?

4.    Do we vocally and unambiguously stand by our top strategic partners at the time of need and stop worrying about how the other friendly nations would react? To what extent do we support our partners in the event of threat?

5.    Which nations should we partner with for defence related technology in the areas such as Fighter Jets, Aircraft Carriers, Long range Missile technology, Advanced Software Simulators and Weapon Control Systems etc.?

6.    How do we simultaneously develop the advanced technology know-how and manufacturing capabilities within our nation in the long term?

7.    How do we ensure we do not get overly dependent on one nation in any area and how do we ensure we always have a  few alternate options?

Today the world is increasingly becoming more and more interdependent and no one nation is completely self-reliant. Our national strategy should be crafted keeping in view as to how we could leverage our strengths and offer help and support in the form of services or goods to our partner nations. At the same time based on the above and looking at the gaps or shortcomings that we have in our defence arsenal, we should negotiate and obtain the goods and services from our partners to plug these gaps. No country can survive on its own in the world of today and a 'complex web of alliances' is the only thing that can act as a 'strong sail to help navigate the rough high seas full of unexpected threats and unknown dangers'.

Our political leadership should take a clear and unequivocal stand on these areas after carrying out a well thought out assessment of ramifications in a thread bare manner and finally arrive at a detailed and elaborate short term and long term strategic plans for our nation. They need to be bold and keep the long term benefits to our nation in mind while taking critical decisions on some of the areas that I mentioned above especially those involving a tectonic shift from our traditional or historical stance. Forging strong ties with foreign nations on various fronts would need our leaders to personally be involved in negotiations and discussions with their counter parts in foreign nations. It is not very easy to forge ties and partnerships with a nation even if we badly want to if there is a negative historical connotation to that relationship. To be able to effect tectonic shifts in our relationships with other nations and undo the negativity or mistrust caused by historical events, our leaders must personally negotiate and convince them of our genuineness of intent and change in nation’s direction or philosophy instead of leaving the task to bureaucrats. Such discussions will many a time need critical policy decisions to be taken or options to be chosen on the spot. 

We will also have to view the relationships with nations especially the ones we depend on for critical defence equipment and technology transfer from a purely long term and strategic view point and not be carried away by the Finance and Accounting principles based evaluation criteria. The intangible benefits that accrue to our nation in the long run from some of the partnerships could be very substantial and perhaps invaluable when looked at from a strategic perspective instead of just looking at the deal price of a specific transaction in isolation which might be on the higher side.

Manohar Parrikar has the right blend of skills needed for: negotiating with foreign equipment suppliers or defence ministers and take quick decisions, providing political leadership and support needed by the armed forces, thinking strategically keeping long term in view and forge the right partnerships, enact the legislations needed for successful defence operations, arriving at a clear vision as to the direction in which we need to move as a nation on the defence front and complement it by provisioning of the requisite enabling machinery be it people, equipment, finances or strategic alliances, coordinating with  the various  other ministries and state  governments etc. And being a Metallurgical Engineer from IIT Bombay is certainly an huge value add for a person who deals with  purchase, evaluation and quality assessment of defense related equipment, arms and ammunition.

However there is one critical point that we all need to remember. Areas such as Defence and External Affairs are very strategic and usually deal with extremely sensitive information. The strategic plans or operational plans would be treated as classified/top secret and highly confidential and only a limited few are privy only to these. Our leaders might not be able to share most of the details with common people like us. It may appear many a time based on our narrow and very limited view into the overall strategy that our leaders are taking a wrong decision/action or working against the interest of the citizens. However the action or decision taken by them in that context could have been the best possible one based on their complete insights and access to 100% information available. It is therefore important that we repose complete trust and confidence in our leaders especially in the areas like Defence and External Affairs and provide them unwavering support needed to carry out these crucial and strategic tasks in the best interest of our nation. I am very optimistic that we will start seeing the outcomes or fruits of all the hard-work being done in some form or other either directly or indirectly in the coming years.

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JAI HIND!

Disclaimer: "The views and opinions expressed in the article are purely the personal views of the author in his personal capacity and have nothing to do with the firm he works for".

A NEW Persona for a RENEWED Nation......

Deepika Padukone -- #MyChoice Video
Image Courtesy: Google Images

“Controversy is indeed a great Marketing Strategy”. Nothing else has ever caught the attention of the target audience more effectively than a marketing campaign disseminating a viewpoint or an opinion which is not only audacious but also ‘bordering on outrageous’ or on the ‘verge of being revolutionary’ from the perspective of a majority of the audience. Such a message when delivered by a well-known celebrity, who displays unwavering conviction and deep emotional commitment to the topic while expressing the same, will only further bolster the ‘attentiveness’ of the audience multi-fold.

A case in point from the recent months, that comes to my mind is the #MyChoice video that was released jointly by popular Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone and director Homi Adajania in association with Vogue India as part of their drive to create awareness on ‘women's empowerment’. This campaign sparked a massive outrage in certain segments of the society who considered it as a sacrilege and on the other hand triggered a lot of cheer, celebration and optimism in certain other segments who identified themselves closely with the philosophy being expressed. The reactions and responses to this video were in huge numbers with the views/opinions being spread across the entire spectrum including the very extreme ends as well. It evoked responses from all segments of the society spanning across the length and breadth of the country. I really do not know what the actual intent of the campaign was, what the expected outcome was and whether or not the expectations have been met from the campaign owner’s point of view.

To my mind, a smart marketing campaign has its foundation on a very sound strategy. The commonly mulled over topics while designing a marketing campaign typically are: key demographics or traits of the target audience, their stated and unstated needs and expectations, how does the product or service satisfy their needs better than competition, what are the key differentiators and product/service features or attributes that need to be highlighted, choosing the right ‘message’ to maximise the impact, alignment of message to the audience, expected reaction of the audience, measurable impact on say product/service sales etc.

The ‘strategy element’ however should play a pivotal role by pondering over questions such as: what the real or unstated intent of the campaign is, what the real or unstated final outcome or result expected from the campaign is, how the final result or outcome from the campaign can be made most effective and impactful. The emphasis of the strategy element is primarily: to clearly differentiate between the stated and unstated objectives of a campaign; careful or subtle and perhaps delicate alignment of the message and theme seemingly with the stated objective but in reality with the unstated objective; design and execute the campaign such that the actual or unstated intent and objectives are met and the actual or unstated final results or outcomes are achieved.

“The key point to note is that the intent or objective of the campaign and the outcome or result of the campaign as viewed by the audience and as viewed by the campaign owner are completely different. And this is by design”.

What really matters is only that the real intent or objective of the campaign from its owner’s perspective is fully achieved and is corroborated by quantifiable campaign results. Let’s quickly take a re-look at Deepika’s #MyChoice campaign as a case in point to help illustrate the concept that I was talking earlier. As we do not know what the real intent of the campaign was, let’s attempt to guess as to what the campaign intent and expected campaign result could possibly have been from the campaign owner’s perspective. To begin with let’s consider the 2 possibilities:

SCENARIO 1:

CAMPAIGN INTENT: “To provide a perspective of the world from purely a woman’s view point and give an insight into the mind-set, deepest emotions, views and expectations of a woman in today’s world, thereby spreading awareness and garnering empathy and support from men and women across the country to promote the cause of women’s empowerment”

CAMPAIGN RESULT: “Win supporters among the Indian populace in large numbers who would not only endorse this view but also be influenced enough by the video to spread the ideas around leveraging social media or even word of mouth. Garner excellent reviews and support from the media and also be appreciated by the men and women spanning across the various segments and various geographies in the country. This would in-turn trigger a change in ground realities which would accelerate the process of women’s empowerment”

SCENARIO 2:

CAMPAIGN INTENT: “To ignite the minds of the men and women in India on a critical but somewhat ignored topic and trigger a nation-wide debate on a few crucial topics which were typically considered as sensitive or not-to-be-talked-about or even a taboo”

CAMPAIGN RESULT: “Trigger a chain of debates and discussions on these sensitive topics among men and women of India, spanning across segments and geographies both leveraging social media and face to face conversations. This will have the outcome of opening up the Indian society atleast to some extent and encourage men and women to start discussing crucial and sensitive topics which were hitherto pushed under the carpet”

From a marketing point of view achieving either the result or outcome in Scenario 1 or Scenario 2 would be an extremely difficult if not impossible task and that too in a country as diverse and large as India. Let’s assume for a moment that the REAL or UNSTATED “Intent” and “Result” from a campaign owner’s point of view is ‘Scenario 2’ and that the STATED “Intent” and “Result” for the consumption of the external world or audience is ‘Scenario 1’. We could then quickly apply the concept of blending the UNSTATED and STATED intents into a single strategy that I talked about earlier and this would make it much simpler to achieve the results or outcomes as expected from a campaign owner’s perspective. In such a case the ‘outcome of the campaign’ would be viewed or rated differently by the audience and the campaign owner which is on expected lines. The other theme embedded as an integral part of the strategy in this case study which would act as a catalyst is, “…extreme or perhaps even controversial views may have to be leveraged so as to be able to trigger a strong enough emotional quake that would shake men and women out of inertia and provoke them enough to open up and voice their opinions and trigger a debate…”

This is a very good strategy to adopt especially when the attempt is to change a deep rooted mind set or modify an ancient practice or stop adherence to an old custom. Such an approach as explained and also illustrated by the case study above is very appropriate and helpful in 'Marketing Social Themes' that are critical for a nation's progress.

Deepika’s #MyChoice video was arguably the most talked about (controversial?) video in my friend circles during the recent months for reasons right or wrong depending on which side one was. Putting the visuals and messaging in that video completely aside for a moment, I do believe that one definitely positive outcome from that video was that it ignited a dormant topic and triggered off a raging debate in the Indian society covering a wide range of topics such as feminism; patriarchy; individual freedom and liberties; values, morals, ethics binding a person; traditions, customs, practices, conventions from the past in today's context etc.

Many of these topics were usually considered sensitive and personal and a few even considered as a taboo. These topics were hitherto never so openly discussed in the Indian society and that too on such a wide scale spanning across age-groups and across the length and breadth of the country. The video acted as a catalyst for men and women across the country who used that topic as a 'conversation starter' and then went on to express their opinions, feelings and emotions on these topics which many a time led to intense debates and on some occasions heated arguments as well.  A key point to be noted is that these debates spanned the “breadth and length” of India as it was on a topic that was equally relevant to each and every Indian and therein lies the BEAUTY of Indian culture. 

Social media played a huge role in becoming the central platform for every man and woman to be able to express their opinions and views from deep inside their heart on these topics without any hesitation or mincing of words. The cloak of anonymity offered by the social media was certainly a huge boost in the arm for persons who were shy and reserved or perhaps constrained by the prevailing norms in the society. The walls and barriers, in form of tacit and implicit norms or controls that exist in the society on ‘what is to be spoken’ and ‘what is not be spoken’ in public by a man or a woman, simply dissolved or were torn down due to the way in which social media operates. Seeing other like-minded persons across the country express their views only encouraged the rest to join the debate. I believe that this is indeed an “inflexion point” in our society and certainly a milestone to be remembered.

We need to recall the fact that Ancient India always had an open and tolerant culture which encouraged debates on varied topics and expression of diverse opinions. Our Nobel Laureate, Amartya Sen succinctly summarizes this in the title of his popular book "The Argumentative Indian" which delves deeply into the evolution of this aspect of Indian culture over several thousand years. Indians believed in "agreeing to disagree" which is probably the CORE PHILOSOPHY behind the creation of a society which embraced a culture of peaceful co-existence and encouraged interactions among people with diverse or even contrarian opinions, values, beliefs, customs etc.

The BEAUTY of Indian culture however was that, despite these interactions and exchange of ideas and opinions with diverse groups of people who many a time would come from far-away lands, Indians had a very deep and innate sense of IDENTITY and steadfastly protected the CORE of Indian tradition, philosophy, value systems, ancient texts and religious beliefs over thousands of years. Indian society was at the same time quite adaptable to embrace practices and techniques which benefitted our people and also was amenable to discard even the accepted beliefs and deeply rooted practices of those times whenever it encountered a convincing logical and scientific reasoning that was contrary to the existing beliefs and practices.

The innumerable invasions on India by many foreigners over the centuries, starting with Alexander in 327 BC to the Persians in 15th century who then ruled over us for many centuries or even the rule by the British from 18th century to middle of the 20th century, could not change the CORE of Indian tradition, value system and religious beliefs. Indians had over the centuries mastered the art of adopting modern practices and techniques, scientific thinking, novel concepts, inventions and ideas that bettered human life but at the same time passionately and fiercely safeguarded their “IDENTITY”.  If one looked deep into an Indian’s mind, one would never miss the “INDOMITABLE INDIAN SPIRIT” and “UNIQUE IDENTITY”. This is true not just for the Indians who are residents of the country but even for those with origins in India and have adopted other faraway lands as their homes. An outsider would indeed be startled to find the FLAME of INDIAN SPIRIT still alive even in person of Indian origin whose ancestors had migrated to a far-away foreign land say even as many as 200 years ago and had no contact whatsoever with India in all these years.

Unfortunately over the years, as Indian culture evolved, the practice of open debates on any topic under the sun or encouraging logical arguments or questioning the status-quo even on deeply rooted beliefs/traditions/practices gradually started getting on to the backburner. Many of the traditions, customs, beliefs and practices over the years gradually became CAST IN STONE and questioning these began to be considered as “sacrilegious”. In my opinion this was the SINGLE BIGGEST REASON for India to lose its dominance on the world stage over the last few hundred years. The saving grace is that the INDOMITABLE INDIAN SPIRIT however continued to remain intact and unabated over the several thousand years.

India has indeed made very significant strides in nearly 70 years after its independence in 1947. India has slowly and steadily begun to get noticed on the global scene and has gained significant respect from even the most developed nations. The liberalization of Indian economy in 1991 under the leadership of our then Prime Minister Shri P V Narasimha Rao has heralded a new era in our country with reforms in the industrial and economic policies. That is truly an “inflexion point” in the history of modern India which laid the foundations for the growth and renewal of global respect that we are seeing for our country today.

Today, India is considered by the top global powers as a force to reckon with and as a potential super power in the coming decades. Fortune 500 corporations from all over the world without exceptions firmly believe that this is a market that will be the epicenter of their activity in future. We should indeed be rightfully proud of our beloved nation for all that it has achieved in just 70 years of independence and within the natural constraints of being a true and fully functional democracy. At the same time we should also be cognizant of the inherent social, cultural and structural weaknesses in our society and the dangers that pose to our nation’s progress in future.  As a nation we should together take corrective actions as soon as possible.

This brings me back to what I mentioned earlier as the “Indomitable Indian Spirit” and our “Unique Sense of Identity” that we ferociously defended over several centuries and also ensured that CORE of Indian tradition, value system and beliefs stood the test of time. Today, I believe that the CORE is under attack due to two primary factors:

1. The advent of cable television in the early 1990s had a significant impact over the years especially on shaping the beliefs and value systems on the generations that grew up with it. It does not really matter whether the impact was in the right or wrong directions. While even centuries of British rule could not cause much of an impact to the core value systems, culture, traditions or even the core mindsets or beliefs of Indians; the access to the western media and thereby exposure to the western culture, way of life, mindsets, beliefs and value systems on a daily basis indeed had a significant impact in shaping up all these aspects of life among today’s young adults. And the last decade which saw the advent of the Internet and Smart Mobile Phones steeply accelerated these influences on the minds of children starting from a very young age. I am not even getting to the aspect of whether the western influence is right or wrong. The issue that one needs to deal with is that, Indian society is most fragmented at this time than at any point ever in the nation’s long history when it comes to the CORE beliefs, mindsets and values that drive one’s life. This makes the concept and definition or delineation of what I was earlier referring to as the “Indian Spirit” or “Unique Identity” very difficult to articulate as arriving at a common definition which is all encompassing is very very complex today compared to the past. The issue is compounded due to the different rates of evolution of individual thought  processes based on extent of foreign influence, family background, indoctrination by parents and relatives, rural/urban differences, geographical area, education levels, peer group, first hand exposure to  foreign cultures and so on.
2. Modern India has certainly made a lot of progress on the social front besides the economic and political fronts. The darker aspects of our society such as social and cultural evils, unscientific customs, traditions and practices, superstitions, outdated and illogical beliefs etc have been addressed to a significant extent though they still rear their ugly heads in certain pockets from time to time. While we address these issues, we need to take cognizance of the fact that our societal norms and social structures, lifestyles and standards of living have significantly evolved in the last 70 years of independence and even more pronouncedly in the last 20 years. I had earlier said that many of the “traditions, customs, beliefs, value systems and practices” which were CAST IN STONE for centuries and questioning them was a big sacrilege in those times. While it may not be as big a sacrilege today, there are many topics under this broad umbrella which an average Indian does not like to talk about publicly or dare to question the status  quo or  attempt defy the norms even now. It might be a good idea to perhaps revisit these traditions, customs, beliefs and value systems that were designed for the way of life of a person in the form that existed several centuries ago and all these customs and traditions might not make sense or be applicable in today’s context.

We need to address both the challenges that I delineated above if we are to ensure that the “Indomitable Indian Spirit” and “Unique Sense of Identity” continue to remain powerful differentiating factors and help accelerate India’s journey to attain a preeminent position in the world. India should regain its past glory and respect which was based on intellectual superiority, self-sufficiency, technological superiority and superior standard of living of its people. And I believe that we can address both the challenges with a common solution: “become argumentative Indians again”. “Harness the power of intellectual debates and arguments based on logic and reason which originally created the foundation for the pre-eminence of India in the ancient times”. These practices will need to once again come to the fore-front.

Indian society needs to once again become one that encourages diverse opinions, tolerates opposing views, questions status quo on certain traditions, norms and practices however deeply rooted they might be, creates a newer set of traditions, practices and rituals which are relevant in today’s context by overruling the ones that are not applicable anymore, gives men and women freedom to express their views on any topic, relook at the belief system and values to determine applicability and relevance, creating right forums for sharing and exchanging views etc. And for a country as diverse and as populous and as geographically spread as India, we cannot achieve any of the above without leveraging technology and social platforms. Indians need to work together on all these areas with a newer mindset and find concrete solutions. Once the above is accomplished, the next step would be to have a nation-wide debate and discussion for finally arriving at what can be termed as the “Highest Common Factor” method of delineating the newer and updated definition of “Indian Spirit” and “Indian Identity”. These definitions should be relevant and applicable to today’s context and at the same time keep the essence and core theme from the ancient times intact so as to maintain the continuity.

Coming back to Deepika Padukone and her #MyChoice video, as I mentioned earlier we did see a large number of men and women, spanning across different age groups and different geographical areas of the country, discussing about the content and messaging in the video and many expressed their opinions touching upon certain topics which were usually not discussed publicly on such a wide scale earlier. While I do know that there is no final consensus reached on that topic and that probably it will take a very long time to reach that stage. The point to be noted however is that it certainly ignited the minds of men and women across the country and set them to active thinking mode on contemporary topics such as feminism or patriarchy or even sexual relationships. In a way, perhaps even inadvertently, an attempt was perhaps also made to rekindle the flame of “argumentative Indian” which lay dormant and hidden beneath multiple layers of filters formed due to conditioning of mind over several centuries. This is indeed a very great beginning and a significant accomplishment from my perspective.

Some of the critical problems that we are facing today in our society such as Gender Crime, Human Trafficking, Dowry related crimes, Pre-Marital or Extra-Marital relationship linked crimes etc should not be left to the law enforcement authorities or law & policy makers alone. These are essentially “social” problems at the root and the society needs to engage in multiple levels of dialogue involving diverse groups of people across the country and finally arrive at a consensus based solution from a societal stand point which can prevent or atleast minimize the occurrence of such incidents. And we can only forge such a culture of debate and open mindedness by making concerted efforts in this direction and leveraging every opportunity to provoke and coax the members of our society to express themselves openly and encourage debate on all topics critical to our society and our nation.

The KEY to the progress of our nation is therefore the resurgence of “THE ARGUMENTATIVE INDIAN” in a modern avatar and a transformed society with a mindset that not only accepts but also encourages a person donning that avatar.

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DISCLAIMER 1: The author DOES NOT have any association or connection whatsoever with the #MyChoice video, the Vogue Empower campaign or its producers/campaign owners. He neither subscribes to nor disagrees with the views or opinions or messages expressed or visuals displayed as a part of that campaign. The author does not know what the intent of the campaign was or results expected of the campaign were from the producer’s perspective. He has only attempted to use the examples purely as a case study to illustrate his ideas on “marketing social themes” which are critical for nation’s progress. This article was purely written in good faith and the author sincerely apologizes if any ones sensitivities or feelings or sentiments or emotions have been inadvertently hurt by the views or opinions or ideas expressed in this article.

DISCLAIMER 2: The views expressed in the article are purely the personal views of the author and have nothing to do with the company he works for. This article in its entirety has been written purely in his personal capacity.