India’s quest for ‘Civilizational partnership’ with Southeast Asia: Contextualising ties with Myanmar and Indonesia

India’s foreign policy, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has undergone significant transformation as it seeks to redefine its role both regionally and globally. The shift is best reflected in its attempts to reinvigorate ties with the countries in the ‘extended neighbourhood,’ especially South East Asia, as the region is economically crucial and strategically important for India. ‘Look East,’ initiated in 1991, was rechristened to ‘Act East’ by the Modi government in 2014 to enhance engagement with ASEAN countries. Among them, Myanmar and Indonesia hold special significance for India. India, in recent years, has taken several initiatives to establish greater connectivity with Myanmar through the ‘gateway’ of the Northeast, using culture as a tool of diplomacy. The paper will provide a historical account of India’s civilisational ties with Myanmar and Indonesia and highlight the possible revival of ties in the complex new world order. It would also attempt to retrospect how the disconnect arose between the two and provide analysis of the ongoing developments in reviving the ancient ties. Alas, the paper argues for moving beyond a state-centric and state-driven approach towards adopting a people-centric and people-driven connectivity approach involving Northeast and Odisha provinces and their people as active stakeholders in India’s diplomatic initiatives with Myanmar and Indonesia.