The 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi ended on September 13, but some of its most widely shared images had little to do with trade, security or the global order. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim sang Kishore Kumar’s “Khwab Ho Tum Ya Koi Haqeeqat” at a gala dinner, while Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s long-standing enthusiasm for Indian music resurfaced around the summit. The moments were informal, but they illustrated something much larger: Indian popular culture has become a durable channel of familiarity between India and countries far beyond its borders.
That matters because soft power rarely arrives in the form of a diplomatic communiqué. It often works through things people already know and enjoy—a song, a movie, a star or a line of dialogue. Anwar’s performance and Indonesia’s cultural references did not change the BRICS agenda, but they showed how Indian cinema and music can create an emotional connection that formal diplomacy alone cannot manufacture.
Anwar Ibrahim’s Kishore Kumar moment
At the BRICS gala in New Delhi, Anwar Ibrahim took the microphone and performed “Khwab Ho Tum Ya Koi Haqeeqat,” the Kishore Kumar classic from the 1965 film Teen Devian. A pianist accompanied him as he sang, turning an otherwise formal diplomatic gathering into an unexpectedly intimate cultural moment. Anwar subsequently shared footage of the performance on social media, where it quickly attracted attention.
The choice of song was significant because Anwar’s affection for Hindi cinema is not new. During his 2024 visit to India, he was also filmed singing the Hindi classic “Dost Dost Na Raha.”
There is also a deeper personal history connecting Anwar to India. As Malaysian and Indian officials have recalled, Anwar and former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh served as finance ministers during the 1990s. After Singh died in December 2024, Anwar described him as a close friend and recalled that Singh had offered scholarships for Anwar’s children while Anwar was imprisoned in Malaysia. Anwar declined the offer but remembered the gesture as an act of personal kindness.
That history does not mean every Hindi song Anwar sings should be interpreted as diplomacy. But it helps explain why his relationship with India has a personal dimension that goes beyond government-to-government ties.
Indonesia’s Bollywood connection runs deeper too
Indonesia provided another example of the same cultural familiarity.
President Prabowo Subianto has repeatedly spoken publicly about his fondness for Indian music. During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s July 2026 visit to Indonesia, Prabowo joked that a genome-sequencing test had found Indian ancestry in his DNA and quipped that this might explain why his body moves whenever he hears Indian music. The remark was clearly delivered humorously, rather than as a scientific explanation for his musical tastes.
The cultural relationship itself, however, is real and predates the joke. Prabowo was chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations in January 2025, and an Indonesian delegation sang the Bollywood song “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” at a banquet held in his honour at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
By the time Prabowo returned to New Delhi for the 2026 BRICS summit, Indonesia was no stranger to using Indian popular culture around high-level engagements. The Indonesian president’s official BRICS programme, meanwhile, focused on substantially more serious issues: inclusive growth, Global South cooperation and reform of global governance.
That contrast is important. The music was not the substance of Indonesia’s BRICS diplomacy. It was part of the social and cultural environment surrounding it.
| Moment | What happened | What it reveals |
|---|---|---|
| Anwar Ibrahim, BRICS 2026 | Sang Kishore Kumar’s “Khwab Ho Tum Ya Koi Haqeeqat” at a gala event | A personal affinity with Hindi cinema that has appeared during multiple India visits |
| Anwar Ibrahim, India 2024 | Sang “Dost Dost Na Raha” during his visit | His interest in Indian music predates the latest summit |
| Prabowo Subianto, 2026 | Publicly joked about Indian DNA and his love of Indian music | Indian popular culture has become part of his public engagement with India |
| Prabowo visit, 2025 | Indonesian delegation performed “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” at Rashtrapati Bhavan | Cultural familiarity has been incorporated into formal state hospitality |
| Barack Obama, 2015 | Quoted a famous Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge line in New Delhi | Bollywood references can resonate even at the highest levels of international diplomacy |
Bollywood’s global journey did not begin with BRICS
The significance of these moments becomes clearer when placed against the much longer international history of Indian cinema.
Raj Kapoor was one of the earliest Indian stars to become a major cultural figure overseas. In the former Soviet Union, films such as Awaara and Shree 420 became hugely popular after the 1950s, while Kapoor himself became a household name. Indian cinema subsequently developed an unusually strong following across parts of Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
The phenomenon was partly cultural and partly political. Indian films often presented stories about inequality, ordinary people and social justice that resonated with Soviet audiences. Later, more entertainment-focused Hindi films continued to find large audiences.
This history matters because it demonstrates that Indian cinema’s international influence did not emerge suddenly with today’s streaming platforms or social media. Bollywood has spent decades building recognition in markets with very different languages, political systems and cultural traditions.
When a movie line reaches the White House
The reach of Indian cinema has occasionally surfaced in much more unexpected places.
In January 2015, during a town-hall event in New Delhi, U.S. President Barack Obama quoted the famous “Senorita” line from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, the Shah Rukh Khan-starring film released in 1995. The reference drew a loud reaction from the audience. Obama also referred to Indian cultural experiences elsewhere during his India visit.
The episode illustrates an important feature of cultural influence: recognition can outlive the original moment.
A film released two decades earlier did not need to be explained to the young Indian audience listening to Obama. The reference worked because the cultural shorthand was already understood.
That is a different form of influence from conventional diplomacy. A government can negotiate an agreement, sign a memorandum or issue a joint statement. Popular culture creates something less formal but potentially more persistent: shared references.
Soft power works through familiarity
This is where the BRICS musical moments become more interesting than they initially appear.
The term “soft power” is often used loosely, but the underlying idea is straightforward: countries can increase their influence by making their culture, values and institutions attractive rather than relying only on economic or military power.
Cinema is particularly well suited to this because it combines several forms of cultural exposure at once—language, music, fashion, food, locations, family structures and ideas about romance and social life.
A viewer does not have to agree with Indian foreign policy to enjoy a Kishore Kumar song. Someone does not need to study Indian history to recognise Shah Rukh Khan. And a leader does not need a formal cultural agreement to develop an affection for Hindi music.
That distinction is crucial. The existence of cultural popularity does not automatically translate into political influence. People can love Indian films while disagreeing with the Indian government. Cultural appeal is not a guarantee of diplomatic support.
But familiarity can lower barriers. When a foreign leader sings a song that millions of Indians know, the interaction becomes immediately legible to the public. The leader is no longer communicating only through protocol; he is entering a cultural space that audiences already understand.
The business impact is becoming more visible
The international reach of Indian cinema is also increasingly connected to tangible economic activity.
In October 2025, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that three Yash Raj Films productions would be made in the United Kingdom from 2026. The British government said the productions were expected to create more than 3,000 jobs and bring additional investment to the country’s screen sector.
That illustrates the point at which cultural influence becomes an economic relationship.
A successful international film ecosystem does not only benefit actors and producers. It can generate work for crews, studios, technicians, visual-effects companies, hotels, transport providers and other businesses surrounding production.
The same principle operates internationally when foreign audiences consume Indian entertainment. Cultural exports can create demand for locations, talent, technology, distribution and partnerships beyond the country where the stories originate.
Why the BRICS videos mattered
The viral clips from New Delhi should not be mistaken for evidence that Bollywood suddenly became a diplomatic instrument.
The BRICS summit remained overwhelmingly about geopolitical and economic questions. The expanded grouping of 11 members met amid conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, tensions between major powers and debates over the future of global governance. Its final declaration addressed issues ranging from multilateralism and trade to international cooperation.
The music mattered for another reason: it showed how culture can travel alongside diplomacy without being formally placed on the agenda.
Anwar’s Kishore Kumar performance was unscripted enough to feel personal. Prabowo’s recurring references to Indian music similarly suggest that the cultural connection existed before the leaders arrived in New Delhi. Neither needed a BRICS resolution.
That is precisely what makes these moments useful as examples of soft power.
The next test is whether cultural familiarity becomes lasting influence
India has already spent decades building recognition through cinema and music. The more difficult question is whether that cultural familiarity can consistently translate into deeper people-to-people relationships, tourism, creative partnerships, commercial investment and sustained diplomatic goodwill.
The evidence points to several promising channels: international film production, cross-border creative agreements and the continued circulation of Indian music and cinema through digital platforms. But cultural popularity should not be confused with measurable political influence. Establishing that connection requires evidence beyond viral videos.
For now, the BRICS summit offered a vivid snapshot of something that has been developing for generations. While governments negotiated over trade, security and the changing international order, a Kishore Kumar song crossed the room with no translator, no communiqué and no protocol. That may be one of the clearest demonstrations of cultural reach: **the influence is strongest when people encounter it not as diplomacy, but simply as something they already know.**