India’s soft power is on the rise, in parallel with its hard economic power as one of the fast growing major economies in the world. Acknowledging the notion of soft power developed by Joseph Nye, whose focus was primarily on the United States, this paper will suggest that an ancient civilization such as India offers a more complex narrative of its global presence. The paper discusses India’s soft power within three domains: firstly, the democratic strengths of India, a particular distinction among the BRICS countries. As the world’s largest democracy, India has retained and arguably strengthened democracy in a multi-lingual, multi-racial and multi-religious society, a model now under threat among Western democracies as well as within India as a majoritarian ideology takes root. The second domain will focus on the diasporic dimension of India’s international presence, increasingly viewed by Indian government and corporates as a vital resource for its soft power. As the world’s largest English-language speaking diaspora, the Indian presence is visible across the globe, as are ideas emanating from India. The third domain will focus on the emergence of an Indian internet – part of the Indian government’s $18 billion ‘Digital India’ initiative, launched in 2015 - and its potential for becoming the world’s largest ‘open’ internet. The paper argues that the push for digital commerce and communication is increasing under the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Already home to the world’s second largest internet population, its creative and cultural industries have the potential to circulate across various digital domains, resulting in globalized production, distribution and consumption practices. Such content will no longer be an artistic or creative enterprise but a global brand, contributing to the reimagining of India’s role on the international stage, from that of a socialist-oriented voice of ‘the Third World’ to a rapidly modernizing, market-driven democracy. However, the chapter will argue that these three domains of soft power will remain ineffective until India is able to eliminate the poverty afflicting a large number of its citizens. Among the BRICS countries, India retains the unfortunate distinction of having the largest number of people living below the poverty line. Will its democratic, diasporic and digital credentials help the country’s developmental agenda?