India’s diversity, demography give it a unique global advantage: British Indian businessman

New Delhi: India’s diversity and its expanding creative economy are among the country’s major strengths and can play a significant role in driving its economic potential, Karan Bilimoria, Baron Bilimoria and Member of the House of Lords of the United Kingdom, said on Monday.

Speaking at the Kautilya Economic Conclave 2026 here, Bilimoria said discussions on investment and the economy often focus on macroeconomic indicators such as GDP growth, per capita income and geopolitics, but the underlying strength of a country is also shaped by its culture.

“India's strength is not just in its scale, being the most populous country in the world, but it has two other things: demography, diversity. the diversity of India, whether it's in language, whether it's in race, whether it's in religion, whether it's in terrain, whether it's in food, whether it's in different cultures, whether it's music, dance, all over this country is beyond compare. No other country comes close to it,” Bilimoria said.

He highlighted the breadth of India’s diversity across languages, religions, communities, geography, food, music, dance and regional cultures. According to him, India’s cultural diversity is unmatched globally and represents an important source of the country’s strength.

Bilimoria also underlined the potential of India’s creative industries and media sector. He said the country’s film industry extends far beyond Bollywood, with regional film industries across different parts of India contributing to the creative economy.

He said the creative economy accounts for around 6 per cent of global GDP and noted that India has a significant share of its economy linked to creative activity, supported by millions of small and medium-sized enterprises.

“India has huge power in the creative industries, let alone the media sector,” Bilimoria said, adding that the scale of India’s cultural ecosystem is reflected in its 22 official languages and thousands of dialects, along with the country’s diverse religious and cultural traditions.

He said India’s combination of scale, demography, diversity and creative capabilities gives it a distinctive economic and cultural position globally.

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