MiGs, missiles and messaging: Why PM Modi’s Adampur visit was high on powerful optics

High on both substance and signalling, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rousing speech from the Adampur air base on Tuesday sent a clear message not just to Pakistan but the whole world.

Days after India and Pakistan agreed to a fragile truce following four days of intense war, Prime Minister Modi visited the Adampur air base in Punjab, which played a key role in ensuring India's air defence during drone and missile attacks from across the border.

From a cap emblazoned with a "trishul" to thunderous chants of "Bharat Mata ki Jai" and a striking photo with the S-400 in the background, PM Modi’s visit sent out powerful visuals underpinning India’s resolve and grit in times of conflict.

Here are the many messages Modi delivered, not just with words but optics too:

- First off, it was the timing of the visit itself. The Prime Minister's visit comes just days after Pakistan claimed it inflicted heavy damages on the Adampur base. It also said it destroyed an S-400 air defence system while celebrating a farce "victory" before the world.

PM Modi’s visit to the base, his animated interaction with airmen and the "josh" in the air made it clear that Pakistan’s imagined victory was simply a narrative meant for domestic consumption only.

Earlier this morning, I went to AFS Adampur and met our brave air warriors and soldiers. It was a very special experience to be with those who epitomise courage, determination and fearlessness. India is eternally grateful to our armed forces for everything they do for our nation. pic.twitter.com/RYwfBfTrV2 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 13, 2025

That Modi visited the base merely days after it came under attack from Pakistan also signalled strength and casual defiance of any threat from the neighbour.

- The visit also helped bust a widely spread Pakistani claim that one of its missiles hit India's S-400 air defence system. One of the pictures from Modi's visit stood out, and later went viral on X, since it featured the S-400 air defence system in the background.

This was the very S-400 system that Pakistan claimed to have destroyed during its missile attack on India. In the picture, PM Modi can be seen saluting the airmen with the missile launchers of the Russia-made AD system clearly visible in the background.

- Modi's tough talk on terror and repetition of India's new 3-point doctrine were also a direct signal to Pakistan. He said this in his first address on Operation Sindoor on Monday and repeated it from the Adampur air base the next day. "Our 'Lakshman Rekha' for Pakistan is very clear; any terror attack will be met with a definitive reply on our own conditions," he said.

He added that India will not tolerate any nuclear blackmail and strike precisely and decisively at the terrorist hideouts developing under the cover of nuclear blackmail.

The clear red line, drawn by PM Modi himself, drives home the point that any act of terror on Indian soil will now be seen as an "act of war".

Sharing some more glimpses from my visit to AFS Adampur. pic.twitter.com/G9NmoAZvTR Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 13, 2025

- PM Modi's pictures with a Russia-made MiG-29 and S-400 missile systems were perhaps also a signal to the world, especially the US, about India's confidence in its long-standing defence partner Russia at a time when Washington is also trying to sell its weapons to New Delhi.

The imagery also seemed to send a subtle message to President Donald Trump, who claimed credit for brokering peace between India and Pakistan and suggested that the Kashmir issue needed resolution. The subtext was clear: it was India’s soldiers and weaponry — not third-party mediation — that proved decisive in the conflict.

- Lastly, the visit conveyed that the spirit of the Indian armed forces is not only intact but soaring. The roaring chants of 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' throughout Modi’s address, the Prime Minister's proud interactions with airmen, and the charged atmosphere overall — every visual signaled a state of high preparedness and projected an image of national pride and glory. Moreover, Modi's hat featured a "trishul" — the spear symbolizing Shiva's power to destroy evil, ignorance and ego. That itself was a clear message of India's unwavering resolve in the face of the enemy.