A single speech, no matter how forceful, may not suffice to cement a new stance, particularly in the complex arena of international economic relations. Yet the Prime Minister’s presentation at the World Economic Forum is sure to get the political-business leadership thinking. For he signalled that the days of India being a pushover had ended, the country now had the requisite economic and political muscle to assert itself in any forum.

That is the larger message that Mr Narendra Modi sent out: the Indian business honchos at Davos were ecstatic, early international reaction pointed to a new reality having presented itself ~ and the negative twitter-response from Rahul Gandhi amounted to a sign of discomfort and embarrassment over Mr Modi having made his mark at a prestigious forum.

It is true that the Modi government has hard work ahead to convince the global business leadership that “red tape to red carpet” was more than yet another catchy slogan, yet the opening session of the WEF would not be able to forget how things have changed from the last time an Indian prime minister took the stage there ~ the image of a client-state stretching out a begging bowl had become a thing of the past: there was need for that to be duly noted by those unaware of the clout of what some experts project as a rising giant.

Of special significance was Mr Modi’s making it clear he did not subscribe to Donald Trump’s belief that the White House held all the aces. He threw down the gauntlet when he slammed protectionism (as manifest by the “America First” credo) and bracketed it with climate change and terrorism as major threats to the world order. And he spoke for the developing world when he made bold to ask, “Do global organisations created after the Second World War really reflect the aspirations and dreams of mankind today. With respect to the developing countries there is a very big gap…”

It is more than a trifle unfortunate that pressing domestic business ~ Republic Day festivity etc ~ meant that Mr Modi had to come home before the US President mounted the Davos stage and threw a counter-punch. Yet it was no shoot-and-scoot affair, for while the Prime Minister refrained from specifying his target only the “dumb” would not know in which direction he was firing.

How that will impact Indo-US relations will be worth monitoring in the days ahead. A barb was also thrown the Beijing way when he ridiculed the “good terrorism versus bad terrorism” misconception. According to one report, the audience increased the volume on their headphones when Mr Modi spoke of “protectionism raising its head” just hours after the US announced enhanced tariffs on selected imports. If he keeps speaking in similar strain his voice will be one that it might be imprudent to ignore.