In an unusual exercise in public diplomacy, India’s newly appointed Ambassador to China, Vikram Doraiswami, has taken to social media, speaking fluent Mandarin while offering Chinese audiences a guided tour of the Indian Embassy in Beijing.The video, posted on Saturday, days after Doraiswami assumed charge in Beijing, departs from the traditionally formal style of diplomatic communication and instead adopts a more personal, direct approach aimed at engaging ordinary Chinese citizens.”Hello everyone. This is the Indian Embassy in China. I am Vikram Doraiswami, the newly appointed Ambassador of India. I would like to show my Chinese friends and audience our embassy and what services we provide here,” the envoy says in Mandarin at the start of the video.Take a tour of the Indian Embassy in Beijing with our new Ambassador @VDoraiswami@MEAIndia@IndianDiplomacy pic.twitter.com/94rcEH6L7T— India in China (@EOIBeijing) May 30, 2026What follows is a walk-through of the sprawling embassy complex in Beijing’s diplomatic district, with Doraiswami personally explaining the various sections of the mission, its cultural outreach programmes and India’s civilisational heritage.The envoy introduces viewers to the embassy’s cultural, economic and commercial wings, highlighting the range of services available to Chinese citizens and visitors. He also showcases the mission’s cultural centre, where courses in yoga and Indian dance are conducted.In one of the video’s notable moments, Doraiswami stops beside a statue of Rabindranath Tagore and recalls the Nobel laureate’s historic visit to China more than a century ago.Addressing Chinese viewers in their own language, he speaks of the deep cultural links between the two Asian giants and describes India and China as homes to two of the world’s oldest civilisations and largest populations.The ambassador also highlights India’s cultural diversity, traditional arts and crafts, and an exhibition space showcasing products under India’s “One District One Product” initiative.The effort marks a departure from conventional diplomatic outreach, where ambassadors typically communicate through official statements, media interviews or formal public appearances. By choosing Mandarin and social media as his medium, Doraiswami appears to be targeting a wider Chinese audience beyond government and diplomatic circles.The timing is significant. India and China have been working to rebuild ties after relations came under severe strain following the military standoff along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh in 2020. In recent months, both sides have taken steps to restore dialogue mechanisms and improve people-to-people exchanges.Against that backdrop, the ambassador’s video is being seen as an attempt to broaden engagement at the societal level by presenting a more accessible image of India and its diplomatic presence in China.Doraiswami concludes the video with an invitation to Chinese citizens to visit the embassy, attend its events and follow its social media platforms.For a profession often associated with closed-door negotiations and carefully worded communiqués, the sight of India’s ambassador speaking Mandarin and personally conducting a virtual tour of the embassy offered a rare glimpse of diplomacy stepping out from behind official walls.