Public image of Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi, the prime minister of India since 2014, has elicited a number of public perceptions regarding his personality, image, background, and policies.
Modi started his public career in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a far-right Hindutva paramilitary organisation, in the 1970s as a Pracharak (transl. propagator). He was deputed by the RSS to their political arm, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 1980s. Modi's skills at organising successful political campaigns saw him rising in the party hierarchy through the 1990s in his native state of Gujarat. He served as the chief minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014. The beginning of his tenure as the chief minister saw the sectarian riots of 2002, and the subsequent visa ban by many foreign governments. His overall tenure as chief minister saw faster economic development in Gujarat relative to other Indian states. This gave him the moniker, Vikas Purush (transl. development man). Elections in India to the Lok Sabha since 2014 Indian general election have been fought with Modi at the center of the campaigns. Modi has served as the prime minister of India since 2014.
Scholars and biographers have described Modi's personality as energetic, eccentric, arrogant, and charismatic. Modi has received consistently high approval ratings during his premiership. He has consistently topped in the list of most popular leaders in surveys done in the leaders' own countries. Similarly he has received criticism for his divisive politics and misleading statements.
The BJP, for its national and regional elections in the last ten years, has used Modi as the central figure of their campaigns. Modi has used social media, government media outlets, and a careful control over his appearances, to cultivate his image.