this story originally appeared in on sep 4 2016it is only when india has acquired the ability to design fabricate and erect its own plants without foreign assistance that it will have become a truly advanced and industrialised country jawaharlal nehru our make in india initiative is not intended for only manufacturing for the domestic market or import substitution it is as much about making worldclass products and services for the whole globe narendra modi in the first flush of independence swadeshi selfreliance was as much a buzzword as were selfsufficiency development and control of resources indias first prime minister pursued a mixed economy where basic industries energy power metals coal electricity telecom would remain under state control and the sole purview of the public sector undertakings a quarter of a century after liberalisation those infamous temples of modern india still exist many in a wretched state but the bar of selfreliance has been reset to a significantly higher level nationbuilding via industrialisation is still at the heart of the development model but with differences india is now aiming to become a global manufacturing hub in which both domestic and multinationals corporations will make their products within the country it is selfreliance and selfsufficiency with plenty of help from foreign direct investment which in the current dispensation is clearly a lesser evil than imports as long as it works for india and is done to put it simply if a bit tritely with love for india so if giant steel factories in rourkela bhilai and duragpur were symbols of indias quest for selfreliance and industrialisation postindependence the postreforms era of nationbuilding is more nuanced and of course with fewer altruistic motives the nation should prosper but so should all stakeholders owners investors employees consumers against that backdrop it perhaps isnt surprising to see an array of indian businesses donning the nationalistic colours in various shades a few are palpably brash about their nationalism like patanjali ayurved which would cock a snook at foreign corporations and foreign money others are more subtle a company might dedicate its brand to the country like reliance industries chairman mukesh ambani just did with the telecom venture jio for yet others patriotism is a good positioning platform in a landscape in which wearing ones nationalism on ones sleeve is par for the course theres no guarantee that such positioning will work though there is a thumb rule the sadder the product the greater is the chance of companies using such appeals to sell says partha sinha vice chairman and managing director for ad agency mccann in india his views will not win him many fans in india today but sinha says he always tries to dissuade clients from using nationalism as a strategybaba and company yet when yoga guru ramdev declares patanjali is patriotism he may actually be able to pull it off thats because his company which swears by an array of products steeped in tradition from