As an ordinary Indian citizen who actually tries to follow the governments moral lectures on Atmanirbhar Bharat, I was stunned to find that Piramal Pharmawhile wrapped in patriotic brandingopenly maintains a Shanghai, China Sourcing Office, as listed on its own website. So here we are, being told not to buy Chinese-made phone covers or Diwali lights or imported Ganesa idols, while one of the most politically connected corporate houses quietly relies on Chinese supply chains without the slightest discomfort. It almost feels as if Atmanirbharta is a rule only for the masses, while the crony classes remain happily Shangh-AI-nirbhar, and tycoons stay Sangh-nirbhar whenever convenient.
The contradiction gets harder to ignore when the rest of us are shamed by TV anchors and leaders for purchasing Chinese goods, even as corporations with deep political friendships continue their operations in China smoothly and silently. Publicly available data shows a long list of coincidencesMr. Piramal’s electoral bond contributions to BJP, donations to opaque PM CARES, older business links with ruling-party politicians like BJP Minister Piyush Goyal through Flashnet Scandal, marriage alliances with the Ambani family(again BJP-associated)all of which ensure that no one ever questions how Piramals China presence fits into the nationalist sermons delivered to ordinary people. And the pattern becomes even clearer if one recalls the DHFL resolution episode, where countless Indian retirees and pensioners lost massive chunks of their life savings while crony tycoon Piramal emerged relatively unscathed. Strangely, this was never labelled anti-national, even though many of those who suffered were the very people the ruling establishment claims to represent and protect.
Meanwhile, Indias territorial issues with China continue to be documented by various international sources, yet corporations expanding their China linkages face no public scrutiny. No boycotts, no media outrage, no nightly patriotic lectures. Its as if patriotism has become a subscription servicemandatory only for the poor, optional for the powerful. As a consumer, I think I deserve basic clarity: What exactly does the Piramal Pharma company source from Shanghai? Why is there no transparency despite constant calls for boycotting Chinese products? How does this align with the idea of Atmanirbhar Bharat? And why is patriotic morality enforced on ordinary citizens but never on corporations that enjoy political intimacy?
At the end of the day, Piramal Pharmas lofty talk of nation-building, value-based leadership, and Gita principles feels mismatched with the reality of global supply chains for profit, nationalist lectures for the public, silence about border issues, and a China-dependent sourcing hub operating behind patriotic rhetoric. It is not merely a contradiction but a full-blown Atmanirbhar paradox, a case study in how nationalism becomes a PR tool when convenient and disappears the moment accountability approaches the crony wealthy. As a customer, I find it very difficult to trust such selectively deployed patriotism, and until greater transparency is offered, the whole thing feels like corporatized hypocrisy masquerading as national service.