Democratic Aesthetics and Cultural Diplomacy between India and Europe: Tracing the Role of Art and Culture as Soft Power in Shaping their Political Thought

The dynamic relation between art, culture, and political values has significantly influenced the trajectories of democratic governance as a political language in both India and Europe. From India’s anti-colonial aesthetic traditions to Europe’s post-war reflections on decolonisation and participatory democracy, cultural forms have offered domains for reaffirming democratic ethos. This paper examines artistic exchange and cultural diplomacy as significant forms of soft power that shape political thought and foster democratic values across both regions. This study highlights the mutual influence of cultural exchange in voicing civic participation and its potential to reinvigorate democratic values in a disjointed political landscape. Building on Jürgen Habermas’s theory of the “public sphere”, the study examines how cultural arenas serve as domains for debate, deliberation, and the manifestation of collective values. By employing a comparative-historical approach, the paper traces the cross-cultural impact of Enlightenment ethos on Reformist movements in India and likewise how India & anti-colonial aesthetic traditions influenced post-war reflections on decolonisation and participatory democracy in Europe. It further utilises Antonio Gramsci’s concept of “cultural hegemony” to analyse how both regions have mediated dominant discourses through aesthetic dissent and cultural defiance. The paper will also examine the role of institutions, such as cultural councils, international biennales, and academic exchanges, through the lens of Martha Nussbaum’s “capabilities approach”.