Table of Contents

1. The Narrative of Historical Conquest
2. The Explanation for Systemic Problems
3. The ‘Religious Invasion’ Narrative: A Cover for Corruption and Social Neglect
4. A National Insecurity: The Inability to Accept Criticism
5. The Role of National Media
6. The Gaslighting of Citizens
7. Conclusion: The Enduring Narrative of Indian Victimhood

Here are some deeply rooted narratives that I’ve observed since childhood, stories of victimhood that continue to shape the national discourse in India. While they stem from genuine historical pain, it’s worth examining if they also prevent a deeper, more constructive self-analysis. It’s time to explore the stories people in India tell themselves and see how the conclusions drawn from them cement a reputation as masters of playing the victim.

The Narrative of Historical Conquest

A. The Tale of Foreign Domination: A central story in the national consciousness is one of historical subjugation, focusing on how invaders, particularly the Mughals and the British, conquered India. This narrative emphasizes the trauma of massacres, the dishonoring of women, the destruction of temples, and the forced imposition of outside religions, casting the nation as a long-suffering victim of foreign aggression.

B. Reality behind it: This perspective often neglects to question why smaller invading armies could consistently defeat the powerful kingdoms of the Indian subcontinent.

Historical narratives often overlook the critical internal weaknesses that led to the repeated success of smaller invading forces against an Indian subcontinent of powerful kingdoms. This vulnerability stemmed from an internal decay where rulers, often engrossed in luxury, pleasure and courtly intrigue, neglected statecraft and failed to innovate in warfare.

Compounding this unpreparedness was a more significant and persistent flaw: an inherent disunity among Indian rulers.

Divided by regional, dynastic, and social lines, they were unable to form a united front, a weakness masterfully exploited by the British through their “Divide and Rule” policy, which preyed on existing rivalries. This historical pattern of fractured unity, driven by the desire for personal gain over collective security, remains a formidable challenge for the nation today.

This portrays India as a long-suffering victim of foreign invaders who are blamed for destroying its culture and religion. It focuses on the trauma of subjugation, absolving the nation’s past rulers of their own role in the defeats.

The Explanation for Systemic Problems

A. The Legacy of Colonial Blame: Even decades after independence, a prevalent tendency is to attribute India’s current systemic flaws, such as the broken education system, outdated legal processes, and bureaucratic inefficiency, directly to the British colonial past. The story told is that the colonizers plundered the nation and deliberately left behind dysfunctional systems.

B. Reality behind it: While the colonial origins of these systems are a fact, this view conveniently ignores the more than seventy-five years of opportunity Indian leaders have had to reform or replace them. Progress has been consistently hindered by self-serving politicians and widespread corruption, where securing power through populist schemes has taken precedence over meaningful development and accountability for decades of failed self-governance.

This point shows Indians playing the victim by attributing all current systemic flaws directly to the British colonial past. It frames the nation as a passive inheritor of broken systems, ignoring decades of post-independence failure to enact reforms.

The ‘Religious Invasion’ Narrative: A Cover for Corruption and Social Neglect

A. The Narrative of a Besieged Heritage: A powerful narrative is promoted that religious conversions are an existential threat to India’s core cultural and religious identity. This anxiety is intentionally heightened when newly converted groups ask for a share of resources from historic Hindu temples, which is then framed as a deliberate attack on tradition and an assault on the heritage of the majority community.

B. Reality behind it: The root of these conversions lies in the severe socio-economic neglect of the poorest Hindus. They were socially marginalized and left to face starvation. Government funds meant for their welfare were often embezzled by corrupt politicians and bureaucrats, leaving these communities with no food, no money for education, and no social dignity. Other religious groups stepped in, providing food, funding for education, and equal treatment in social and religious settings. Consequently, these neglected Hindus converted. This entire sequence, born from internal corruption and neglect, is then reframed as an external attack on Indian civilization, portraying the nation as a victim of foreign religious invasion while conveniently ignoring the foundational issues of corruption and societal failure.

This narrative casts the majority community as a victim of an external ‘religious invasion’ targeting its cultural identity. It reframes the consequences of internal corruption and social neglect as a malicious attack from outside forces.

A National Insecurity: The Inability to Accept Criticism

A. The Perception of Unfair Global Scrutiny: The national discourse often portrays India as a constant target of unfair international criticism. Any negative opinion from abroad, whether a food blogger finding a dish boring, a frustrated tourist complaining about a negative experience, or a critical political statement, is amplified by the Indians and treated as a major national insult, painting the nation as a victim of biased global judgment.

B. Reality behind it: This extreme hypersensitivity reveals a profound national insecurity and a desire for validation from the rest of the world. It suggests a lack of self-confidence to follow a path based on internal convictions without constantly seeking approval from global powers. This reaction is a hallmark of a victim mentality that measures its self-worth through the eyes of others and interprets any form of criticism not as feedback, but as a personal attack.

This portrays the nation as a constant and unfair target of biased international judgment. Any negative opinion is treated as a national insult, reinforcing a sense of being perpetually victimized by the world.

The Role of National Media

A. The Focus on Foreign Opinion: Indian media outlets frequently contribute to this cycle by placing an extraordinary emphasis on what international news sources and foreign governments are saying about India. These external commentaries are given significant airtime and are analyzed endlessly, magnifying their importance.

B. Reality behind it: This preoccupation with the nation’s international image diverts vital attention and resources away from solving urgent domestic crises, such as systemic lawlessness, preventable deaths, and a failing judicial system. By doing so, the media acts as a primary force in upholding this national victim complex, promoting the idea that India’s identity is shaped by external judgments rather than by its own internal strength and accountability.

The media promotes a victim complex by making the nation’s self-worth dependent on external approval from foreign sources. This reinforces the idea that India is a victim of international opinion rather than a master of its own destiny.

The Gaslighting of Citizens

A. The Story of Historical Victimization: A state-sponsored narrative is consistently pushed through nightly media debates where senior politicians participate. They frequently invoke history, claiming India was once the world’s prosperous center until its glory was stolen by invaders like the Mughals and the British. The nation’s current struggles are presented as a direct consequence of this historical plunder, positioning modern India as a victim of its past.

B. Reality behind it: In reality, the same politicians who champion this historical victim narrative are often involved in widespread, present-day corruption. By day, they collude with corrupt businesspeople and bureaucrats to siphon billions from taxpayer funds. This leads directly to collapsing bridges, potholed roads, failing infrastructure, exam scams, and a compromised justice system where criminals can thrive. The nightly debates about past glory serve as a sophisticated form of gaslighting, distracting the public from the country’s own failures and corruption which are the real cause of the people’s suffering.

Politicians portray modern citizens as victims of a stolen historical glory, blaming past invaders for present-day suffering. This narrative distracts from the reality that people are actually victims of current, endemic and widespread corruption.

Conclusion: The Enduring Narrative of Indian Victimhood

• India’s narrative of perpetual victimhood is a deeply woven and self-sustaining cycle, where the nation’s past is weaponized to excuse its present failures.
• Politicians expertly gaslight the citizenry, invoking the trauma of historical conquest and colonial plunder to distract from the systemic decay caused by their own rampant, present-day corruption.
• This manufactured sense of being under siege transforms the consequences of internal social and economic neglect into a fabricated ‘religious invasion’ and fosters a national insecurity so fragile that any external criticism is perceived as a malicious attack rather than a feedback.
• The national media, by amplifying the importance of foreign opinion over urgent domestic crises, acts as a powerful engine for this complex.

Ultimately, by constantly framing itself as a victim of its past and the world, India avoids the difficult self-reflection required for true progress, remaining trapped in a narrative that prevents it from becoming the master of its own future.