Korean wave in India
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By Ranjit Kumar Dhawan
The spread of the Korean wave ― hallyu ― has taken the world by surprise. The popularity of Korean dance, drama, music, food, fashion and movies in Asia and other parts of the world is most interesting. Hallyu has been generating billions of dollars and has contributed to the increasing soft power of Korea.
However, India has remained least affected by hallyu. Barring few areas in northeast India, where hallyu has made some impact, the rest of the country has remained largely untouched.
Even though many Koreans regard Indians as “distant relatives,” the knowledge and understanding about Korea in India remains low. According to the Korean text Samguk Yusa, King Kim Suro of the Gaya kingdom married an Indian princess from Ayodhya named Heo Hwang-ok in 48 A.D. This ancient connection between the countries still remains unknown to most Indians.
In the modern period the great Indian poet and Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore wrote a quatrain in praise of Korea’s past as the “Lamp of the East,” and the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, mentioned Korea’s non-violent freedom movement against Japanese colonial rule (1910-45) in his book “Glimpses of World History.” But apart from these few references to Korea by Indian scholars, the larger Indian population has remained ignorant about Korean culture and history.
In recent years, Korean chaebol such as Samsung, LG, and Hyundai have become household names in India. Korean steel giant POSCO has emerged as the biggest investor in the country. In a recent survey, Samsung and LG were rated the most trusted brands in India. But most of these Korean conglomerates are often mistaken as Chinese or Japanese.
Korean food is also not well known because there are few Korean restaurants in India. Unlike Chinese food, which is quite popular in India, Korean food has still not gained a foothold. To promote the sale of Choco Pie, the Lotte Group in India has recently started producing vegetarian Choco Pie to target the predominantly Hindu population.
India is itself is one of the largest producers of cultural products. Indian food, music, dance, dramas, Bollywood, yoga and ayurvedic medicine are popular all over the world. Therefore, hallyu has not been able to make any substantial impact in India. On the other hand, Korean business groups regard India as a big market. India already has a huge trade deficit with Korea that may not be sustainable in the long run because India is moving toward a conservative and nationalist policy.
In comparison to Korea, Japan holds a positive and favourable image in the Indian mindset. Japan has been one of the largest investors and sources of official development assistance (ODA) to India. In recent years, due to changes in the geo-political situation in the East Asia, India-Japan relations are becoming stronger.
To promote hallyu in India, Koreans will have to consider the specific tastes and preferences of Indians. Instead of merely regarding India as a market and promoting “sales diplomacy,” Korea will have to make some long-term investments.
Despite having a population of over 1.25 billion, India’s performance at the Olympic Games remains pathetic. Investment in promoting sports could be an area where Korea can help India. For example, taekwondo is becoming popular in India, but there is a lack of well-trained experts there. A Korean contribution to improving sports in India would create a positive image among young Indians and help spread hallyu there.
The author is a Ph.D. candidate at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India. His email address is rkdhawan13@hotmail.com.