Chennai: Victory begins not with the bullet, but in the brain. That was the message from Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, who pulled back the curtain on the invisible war of words and wits during India’s decisive Operation Sindoor, while speaking to an engaged audience at IIT Madras.
In a world where perception is power, the General laid bare how Pakistan’s narrative machine managed to paint defeat in the hues of victory a psychological chessboard, as he put it. "If you ask a Pakistani whether they lost, they'll say, ‘Our chief became Field Marshal of course we won!’ That’s narrative management," he quipped, to a mix of laughter and reflection from the crowd.
Operation Sindoor was not just a military mission it was a multi-layered campaign waged across borders and bandwidths. According to General Dwivedi, Pakistan’s ability to convince its own people of a fabricated victory highlights how shaping perceptions is as crucial as shaping battle formations.
“This is how you influence three audiences: your own citizens, your enemy’s population, and the neutral world,” the Army Chief explained. “Victory is in the mind. That’s where every war starts and ends.”
India, he affirmed, wasn’t far behind. Leveraging social media, press briefings, and global outreach, the Indian military crafted a counter-narrative that resonated across continents. The now-viral phrase “Justice Done” emerged as a rallying cry, one that reportedly received record-breaking engagement online.
“This wasn’t an accident,” General Dwivedi said. “Our messaging was intentional. The logo you’ve seen everywhere? It wasn’t outsourced. A Lieutenant Colonel and an NCO created it. This was grassroots strategic storytelling.”
Two women officers, representing the Indian Army and Air Force respectively, were deployed as the faces of this messaging, signaling not just strength but inclusivity a calculated move in India’s global PR playbook.
Drawing a stark contrast with conventional warfare, General Dwivedi described Operation Sindoor as a “grey zone” conflict a term used to describe hybrid warfare that stops short of all-out war.
“In this game of chess, we didn’t know their next move, nor did they know ours,” he said. “Sometimes we checkmated them, sometimes we took bold risks. That’s the essence of modern operations uncertainty, precision, and mental resilience.”
The operation, launched in retaliation for the brutal Pahalgam massacre on April 22 where 26 tourists were gunned down by Pakistan-backed terrorists was green-lit with rare political decisiveness.
“On April 23, the Defence Minister looked at us and said: ‘Enough is enough.’ That wasn’t just rhetoric. All three service chiefs were empowered, unshackled. We were told: do what needs to be done,” the COAS recounted.
And they did. From airstrikes deep inside Pakistan and PoK to neutralizing over 100 terrorists, Operation Sindoor was India’s loud, unambiguous reply. Three of the perpetrators were later eliminated in follow-up Operation Mahadev.
More than just a military triumph, General Dwivedi described the operation as a doctrinal shift a new model of war where intelligence, strategic messaging, and psychological dominance share equal footing with guns and boots.
As India navigates an evolving threat landscape, the Army Chief’s words at IIT Madras ring clear: The war of tomorrow is fought in the minds of millions. And the side with the stronger story often wins before a single shot is fired.