‘I Have Indian DNA’: The Remark by Indonesia's President That Sparked Global Attention

Background: The Purpose of Prime Minister Modi's Indonesia Visit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi undertook an official visit to Indonesia from July 6 to July 8, 2026, as the first leg of a three-nation Indo-Pacific tour that also covered Australia and New Zealand. The visit was structured around India's Act East policy and its evolving Indo-Pacific strategy, with Indonesia positioned as a central partner given its status as the world's largest archipelagic nation.

The engagement carried substantive strategic weight. President Prabowo Subianto received the Prime Minister with a ceremonial welcome, and the two leaders held bilateral talks under the framework of the India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Key outcomes included progress on defence cooperation, with Indonesia emerging as the first international buyer of India's indigenously developed Astra Mk1 beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, alongside pacts covering BrahMos missile supply, maritime security, critical mineral supply chains (notably Indonesia's nickel reserves, essential for electric mobility), trade facilitation, and digital payment systems. Bilateral trade between the two nations currently stands at approximately USD 30 billion annually, a figure that now exceeds India's trade volume with the United Kingdom. During the visit, Prime Minister Modi also addressed the Indonesian Parliament and was conferred Indonesia's highest civilian honour.

The Statement That Stunned the Room: "I Have Indian DNA"

The moment that generated the widest attention, however, did not come from the formal talks. It came at a community event in Jakarta attended by the Indian diaspora, where President Prabowo Subianto made a personal disclosure that drew loud applause: that a genome sequencing test he had undergone ahead of his 2025 state visit to India had revealed that he carries Indian ancestry.

Speaking candidly, Prabowo extended the point further, joking that his ministers and generals — who he said dance and sing to Indian music at formal state banquets — may well share the same ancestry. He went on to make a broader civilizational claim, telling the gathering that Indonesian culture and civilisation have been shaped by Indian influence for centuries, and that a substantial share of the Indonesian language itself derives from Sanskrit, extending even to personal names.

Prabowo did not stop at cultural admiration. He also spoke of his personal regard for Prime Minister Modi, describing himself as a long-time admirer who has studied and adapted several of India's governance programmes for Indonesia, while being careful to clarify that he did not intend to comment on India's internal politics. He linked the present-day closeness between the two nations to a much older friendship, recalling that Indonesia's founding president, Sukarno, was the chief guest at India's very first Republic Day in 1950 — a gesture he himself repeated when he served as chief guest at India's Republic Day in January 2025.

Responding to the remarks, Prime Minister Modi said that Prabowo's words had touched the hearts of Indians, describing the shared "DNA" between the two nations as one built on mutual trust and shared heritage. Modi also referenced the popularity of the Bollywood film "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" in Indonesia, remarking that when India and Indonesia move forward together, it goes beyond "kuch kuch" — becoming, in his words, "bahut kuch hota hai."

The Temple Visit That Followed

Two days later, on July 8, the two leaders travelled together to the Prambanan Temple complex in Yogyakarta — Indonesia's largest Hindu temple complex and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, built in the 9th century and dedicated principally to Lord Shiva. The visit marked the formal inauguration of a joint India-Indonesia conservation and restoration project, with the Archaeological Survey of India named as the lead agency on the Indian side, following a Letter of Intent exchanged between the two governments a day earlier.

At the temple, Modi offered prayers and was received with traditional chants and ceremonial bells. The complex's stone reliefs, drawn from the Ramayana, stand as a lasting record of centuries of cultural exchange between the Indian subcontinent and the Indonesian archipelago — a heritage Prabowo's own remarks had already placed in the spotlight days earlier.

Why This Was Genuinely Surprising

Taken together, these two moments carry a striking undertone: the head of state of the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation publicly claimed Indian ancestry, credited Indian civilisation for shaping his own country's culture and language, and then personally inaugurated the restoration of one of the world's great Hindu temples — all within the same week, and all delivered with evident warmth rather than diplomatic obligation.

This becomes easier to understand against Indonesia's own history. Long before Islam became the dominant faith of the archipelago, the region was shaped for centuries by Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms whose imprint remains visible in Indonesian life today. The country's national airline and national emblem are both named Garuda, drawn from Hindu mythology. The island of Bali continues to maintain a Hindu-majority population and living temple traditions. Sanskrit-derived words remain woven into everyday Indonesian vocabulary, and the Ramayana and Mahabharata continue to be performed through Indonesian classical dance and shadow-puppet theatre.

Seen in that light, Prabowo's remarks and the joint temple visit were less a diplomatic anomaly and more a public reaffirmation of a civilizational inheritance that has coexisted alongside Indonesia's present-day religious identity for centuries — a reminder, delivered by Indonesia's own head of state, of how deeply the histories of the two nations remain intertwined.

Conclusion

Prime Minister Modi's visit to Indonesia will likely be remembered for its defence and trade outcomes in policy circles. But for the wider public, it was President Prabowo Subianto's personal disclosure of Indian ancestry, followed by a joint visit to one of the world's most significant Hindu temples, that turned a routine state visit into a genuinely talked-about moment — one that placed shared history, rather than shared borders, at the centre of a modern diplomatic relationship.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What did Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto say about his DNA?

He told an Indian diaspora audience in Jakarta that a genome sequencing test taken before his 2025 state visit to India revealed he has Indian ancestry, adding that he believes several of his ministers and generals may share the same heritage.

Why did Prime Minister Modi visit Indonesia in July 2026?

The visit was the first leg of a three-nation Indo-Pacific tour and focused on defence cooperation, maritime security, critical mineral supply chains, trade, and cultural diplomacy under the India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

What is the Prambanan Temple?

Prambanan is a 9th-century Hindu temple complex in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is Indonesia's largest Hindu temple compound and is dedicated principally to Lord Shiva.

Why did PM Modi and President Prabowo visit Prambanan together?

The visit marked the inauguration of a joint India-Indonesia conservation and restoration project for the temple complex, with the Archaeological Survey of India serving as the lead agency on the Indian side.

Is Indonesia a Hindu-majority country?

No. Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim-majority nation. However, the archipelago was shaped for centuries by earlier Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms, and traces of that heritage, including Sanskrit-derived language, the Garuda national emblem, and Bali's Hindu-majority population, remain part of Indonesian identity today.

What defence deals were signed during the visit?

Indonesia became the first international buyer of India's Astra Mk1 beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, and the two countries also advanced pacts related to BrahMos missile supply as part of deepening defence cooperation.