Terrorist activities and mutual distrust have clouded India-Pakistan relations. To what extent the use of soft power like sports and cultural exchanges could help generate goodwill between the two countries? Discuss with suitable examples.

Context

Cross-border terrorism (26/11 Mumbai, Pathankot, Uri, Pulwama) and mutual distrust have frozen the India–Pakistan dialogue. Soft power — sports, culture, people-to-people contact — offers a low-cost channel for generating goodwill.

What soft power can achieve

• Cricket diplomacy has repeatedly opened doors: General Zia's visit to Jaipur (1987), General Musharraf's Delhi visit during the 2005 series, and the Mohali World Cup semi-final attended by both Prime Ministers (2011).
• The Kartarpur Sahib Corridor (2019) shows faith-based connectivity operating even amid political rupture.
• Shared language, cinema, music and Sufi traditions sustain popular affection — Pakistani artists and serials have large Indian audiences, and Bollywood commands mass following across the border; initiatives like Aman ki Asha and Track-II dialogues keep constituencies for peace alive on both sides.
• Pilgrimages continue under the 1974 Bilateral Protocol on visits to religious shrines.

Limits

• Soft power collapses under terror shocks: bilateral cricket has remained suspended since the 2012–13 series; Pakistani artists faced bans after Uri (2016); visas are weaponised by both sides.
• Public goodwill does not alter the Pakistan army's institutional hostility, which holds an effective veto over normalisation.
• Symbolic exchanges without movement on terrorism risk legitimising the status quo.

Conclusion

Soft power can humanise the adversary, keep channels open and prepare the ground for dialogue — a necessary complement, but no substitute for verifiable action against terrorism. Insulated, Kartarpur-style mechanisms, expanded carefully, are the realistic template for generating goodwill.