'We have everything but tourists': Bangkok beats India 3:1, analyst calls it a failure

India has 40 UNESCO World Heritage sites, the Himalayas, world-renowned cuisine, ancient wellness systems, and a spiritual legacy—but attracts fewer foreign tourists than a single city: Bangkok.

It’s a statistic that should sting: a country as vast and vibrant as India draws fewer international visitors than Thailand’s capital alone. 

Suraj Kumar Talreja, a financial advisor, calls it what it is—an underachievement of global proportions. “We have everything, except tourists,” he wrote, slamming the nation’s tourism paradox.

In his viral post on X, Talreja argues that India’s tourism shortfall is more than just lost revenue—it’s a missed economic engine. “Now imagine if India touched 10 crore+ foreign visitors every year,” he proposed. The benefits? Billions in foreign exchange, lakhs of jobs, thriving rural economies, and a global soft power leap.

“Tourism is soft power + real economy combined,” he asserted, painting a picture of a country that could—but doesn’t—capitalize on its allure.

The real problem, he argues, isn’t India’s sights. “We don’t need to reinvent the Taj Mahal,” Talreja said. The problem is the guest experience: “dirty public spaces, aggressive touting, scams, patchy infrastructure, poor marketing abroad, and a complicated visitor experience.”

His five-point plan to reverse this perception is rooted in simplicity:

• Keep top 50 tourist zones spotless
• Train frontline workers—drivers, guides, shopkeepers
• Fix the e-visa experience
• Launch a global “India Smiles Back” campaign
• Make hospitality a national virtue again

Talreja’s frustration is clear: the world already loves India—from yoga to festivals to food. “We just need to make visiting it a joy, not a challenge,” he urged.

And if that happens? “We won’t just have 10 crore foreign visitors—we’ll have 100 crore stories told around the world.”