Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has formally endorsed Arattai, a homegrown instant messaging app developed by Zoho Corporation, signaling a decisive shift in the government’s digital self-reliance narrative. Pradhan’s advocacy for Arattai comes directly in response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s continuing call for “swadeshi” adoption across the technology sector, urging citizens to migrate to Indian-made platforms for everyday communication.
In a post shared on the social media platform X, Pradhan described Arattai as “free, easy-to-use, secure, and safe,” and emphasized the platform’s identity as being “proudly made in India”. This digital push is not isolated several cabinet ministers, including Ashwini Vaishnaw, have also highlighted the use of Zoho’s office suite for official government presentations, opting for Zoho Show in place of Microsoft PowerPoint to reinforce the self-reliance message.
Arattai which means “casual chat” in Tamil is engineered for simplicity and privacy. The app provides standard instant messaging features: text, voice, and video messaging, as well as media and document sharing, group chats supporting up to 1,000 members, stories, and channels. Unique to its value proposition is the promise of robust privacy: end-to-end encryption for calls and assurance by developers that user data is not shared with third parties. The messaging app is accessible across major devices, including iOS, Android, desktop platforms, and even Android TV.
Zoho Corporation, headquartered in Chennai and founded in 1996 by Sridhar Vembu and Tony Thomas, delivers over 55 business software tools and currently serves upwards of 130 million users in more than 150 countries, including marquee global brands such as Amazon, Netflix, Deloitte, Puma, Toyota, Sony, and L’Oréal. The company’s tagline encapsulates its vision: “Made in India. Made for the world.”
The endorsements, coupled with tangible government usage, mark a clear precedent for encouraging the adoption of domestic technology solutions. Authorities point to the need to strengthen data privacy, national security, and digital sovereignty by supporting Indian innovations in both personal and professional spaces. Arattai’s feature set and privacy framework position it as a credible challenger to established global messaging platforms, indicating a growing appetite for “swadeshi” digital infrastructure.
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