Sri Lanka stands alone as the only South Asian nation viewed more favourably than unfavourably by publics in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, according to a major Pew Research Center survey, highlighting a rare pocket of goodwill in a region often defined by rivalries.

A new Pew Research Center survey has delivered an unexpected finding: Sri Lanka is the only South Asian country that India, Pakistan and Bangladesh all view more favourably than unfavourably. 

The numbers offer both reassurance and a reality check – while India’s own image remains sharply polarised among its neighbours, the island nation next door continues to enjoy consistent, if modest, goodwill across the board.

The survey, conducted between February 8 and May 7, 2026, polled 3,566 adults in India, 1,039 in Pakistan, 1,044 in Bangladesh and 2,513 in Sri Lanka. It forms part of Pew’s broader Spring 2026 Global Attitudes Survey and builds on earlier regional polling from 2024. The results paint a familiar picture of entrenched rivalries, with Sri Lanka emerging as the quiet outlier.

Sri Lanka: The Only Consensus Positive

Roughly half of adults in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh express a favourable view of Sri Lanka, while no more than a third in any of the three countries rate it unfavourably. Pakistanis (57 per cent) and Bangladeshis (54 per cent) are the warmest, with Indians also showing an improvement of six percentage points since the previous Pew survey in 2024. No other country in the poll enjoys this consistent positive balance from all three neighbours.

For India, this matters. Sri Lanka occupies a strategically sensitive position in the Indian Ocean, long courted by both New Delhi and Beijing through ports, credit lines and infrastructure projects. The fact that ordinary people in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh simultaneously hold net-positive views of Colombo suggests the island has so far avoided being locked into any single power’s camp – at least in the eyes of the public. Whether that soft-power asset translates into leverage during trade talks or debt negotiations remains an open question, but it is a rare commodity in South Asia.

India’s Sharply Divided Image

India itself presents the widest range of opinions. An overwhelming 79 per cent of Sri Lankans view India favourably – up a striking 14 points from 65 per cent in 2024 – while 70 per cent express confidence in Prime Minister Narendra Modi to do the right thing in world affairs. Sixty-three per cent of Sri Lankans also name India as their country’s most important ally. These numbers reflect the tangible impact of India’s multi-billion-dollar assistance during Sri Lanka’s 2022 economic crisis, when New Delhi extended more than $7.5 billion in credit lines and support.

The picture darkens sharply elsewhere. In Bangladesh, only 42 per cent now view India favourably – a 15-point drop since 2024 – while 51 per cent hold an unfavourable opinion. The decline coincides with political turbulence in Dhaka and strains linked to India’s decision to host former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after she fled the country in 2024. In Pakistan, the figure collapses to just 7 per cent favourable, with 91 per cent unfavourable. Pakistanis and Bangladeshis are the two groups most likely to name India as their country’s greatest threat; Indians reciprocate by most often naming Pakistan.

Globally, India’s image remains modestly positive. Across 36 countries surveyed by Pew, a median of 45 per cent hold a favourable view of India versus 41 per cent unfavourable. Sri Lanka tops the list worldwide for positive sentiment; Pakistan sits at the bottom.

Warming Ties Between Pakistan and Bangladesh

While India-Pakistan hostility remains near rock bottom, Pakistan and Bangladesh have grown closer in public esteem. Fifty-four per cent of Bangladeshis now view Pakistan favourably (up from 40 per cent in 2024), and 66 per cent of Pakistanis view Bangladesh favourably. Sri Lankan views of both countries have also improved: favourability toward Pakistan has risen from 44 per cent to 57 per cent, and toward Bangladesh from lower levels to 56 per cent. Indians, by contrast, remain cool – only 8 per cent view Pakistan favourably and just 25 per cent view Bangladesh favourably, the latter a 10-point drop since 2024.

Age, Religion and the Nuances of Perception

Demographics add further texture. Younger adults under 35 tend to view their neighbours more warmly than those aged 50 and older. Younger Indians, for instance, rate Sri Lanka more favourably (54 per cent versus 43 per cent) and are slightly less negative toward Pakistan, though overall unfavourable views of Pakistan remain dominant across age groups.

Religion also plays a role, particularly in India. Indian Muslims hold warmer views of Pakistan (21 per cent favourable) and Bangladesh (41 per cent) than Indian Hindus (6 per cent and 23 per cent respectively). Even so, two-thirds of Indian Muslims still view Pakistan negatively. In Sri Lanka, Hindus express higher confidence in Modi than Muslims or Buddhists.

India’s Neighbourhood Approach

For Indian policymakers and the public, the survey underscores both the durability of India’s soft power in Sri Lanka and the challenges elsewhere. The sharp deterioration in Bangladeshi perceptions is a warning signal at a time when New Delhi is navigating a fluid political landscape in Dhaka. The near-total rejection of India in Pakistan is unsurprising given decades of conflict, yet the mutual identification of each other as the top threat continues to limit any prospect of people-to-people thaw.

Sri Lanka’s unique position offers a different lesson. A smaller state that has successfully maintained net-positive public standing across rival capitals demonstrates the value of calibrated diplomacy and crisis-time solidarity. India’s substantial assistance in 2022 appears to have paid clear dividends in Sri Lankan public opinion. Whether similar outreach can arrest or reverse declining sentiment in Bangladesh will be a key test in the years ahead.

The Pew data ultimately confirms what many in the region already sense: South Asian public opinion remains heavily shaped by history, security concerns and recent political events. In that landscape, Sri Lanka’s quiet popularity stands out as a rare point of convergence – and a reminder that goodwill, once earned, can still travel across even the most difficult borders.