Written by Were Kelly
The Indian government has thrown its weight behind a homegrown rival to WhatsApp, officially endorsing the “Bharat Chat” application and announcing subsidies for its developers in a major push for technological self-reliance.
The move, which capitalises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s personal call for citizens to use the app in September, has triggered a surge in downloads, which now stand at 7.5 million, though it faces the colossal challenge of dethroning Meta’s ubiquitous platform.
The government’s endorsement on Thursday included financial incentives for developers to build features and ensure the app’s robustness.
A key selling point being promoted is its planned interoperability with established apps like WhatsApp, allowing Bharat Chat users to theoretically send messages to WhatsApp users, similar to how the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) allows transactions across different banking apps.
Sridhar Vembu, the CEO of Zoho, which is involved in the app’s development, stated, “We envision an open ecosystem, much like UPI for payments. Interoperability is the key to achieving 100 times our current user base. We will not monetise user data.”
The government’s initiative is framed as a matter of digital sovereignty. The IT minister proclaimed, “Bharat Chat represents a stride towards digital ‘atmanirbharta’ (self-reliance). It is secure, homegrown, and built for the Indian user.”
However, sceptics point to a history of failed attempts to create local alternatives to global social media giants.
A tech policy critic noted, “We’ve seen this movie before with Koo and Moj. Nationalism can drive initial downloads, but retaining users against the network effect of WhatsApp is the real challenge. There are also valid questions about data privacy and the potential for state oversight.”
The broader context is India’s assertive tech nationalism, which previously led to the ban of Chinese apps like TikTok and has seen the government locked in regulatory battles with US tech firms. With over 500 million users, WhatsApp’s footprint in India is immense, and dislodging it will be an uphill battle.
The government hopes that by leveraging the success of its UPI payment model and stoking nationalistic sentiment, it can create a viable competitor.
The success or failure of Bharat Chat will be a crucial test of whether state-backed digital platforms can truly compete with global tech behemoths on their own turf.
Sources: Financial Express, Asia Tech Review.
