My first memory of Seoul goes back to 1988. As a young child, I remember watching the Seoul Olympics in TV , particularly the men’s 100-metre sprint, made infamous by Ben Johnson’s spectacular but tainted victory and the subsequent stripping of his gold medal. From that moment, South Korea remained something of an enigma to me.
How could a country so small, devastated by war and divided into two nations following the Korean War, emerge as one of the world’s leading economies? How did it build global champions across industries as diverse as automobiles, construction, electronics and, more recently, semiconductors and memory chips?
To understand South Korea’s economic renaissance, I would strongly recommend listening to The Knowledge Project podcast episode on Chung Ju-yung, the founder of Hyundai. He crossed from North Korea into the South with money he obtained by selling a stolen cow, and went on to build a global business empire spanning multiple industries. His extraordinary journey mirrors South Korea’s own economic transformation. For an Indian audience, his story resonates particularly well with that of Dhirubhai Ambani and his journey of building Reliance from humble beginnings.
We landed at Incheon Airport on a Saturday evening. Located roughly an hour from central Seoul, Incheon is a major international passenger and cargo hub, reflecting South Korea’s position as a global trading powerhouse. Like Japan and China, South Korea has an extensive high-speed rail network, with KTX trains criss-crossing the peninsula. After spending a couple of days in Busan, we returned to Seoul to explore the capital and, in the process, understand a little more about the country behind the economic miracle.
Tagore’s lamp and Korea’s historical connection with India
“In the golden age of Asia,
Korea was one of its lamp-bearers,
And that lamp is waiting
To be lighted once again
For the illumination of the East.”
These lines from Rabindranath Tagore’s poem The Lamp of the East are inscribed on a statue in Seoul.
Visiting this monument was high on my list of things to do in the city. Tagore wrote these words in the early twentieth century, expressing his hope for Korea’s cultural and national resurgence at a time when it was under Japanese colonial rule.
It was heartening to discover how warmly Tagore is remembered in Korea. We might have missed the statue altogether had it not been for a kind Korean lady who helped us locate it tucked away in a corner of Seoul. That small gesture made the experience all the more memorable.
There is also a historical connection between our two countries: Korea gained liberation from Japanese colonial rule on 15 August 1945, exactly a year before India’s first Independence Day. Bahrain also celebrates its National Day on 15 August, making the date an interesting point of connection across these countries, albeit with different historical circumstances.
The Korean Wave: Culture as an economic engine
For Gen Z and Gen Alpha, South Korea is probably better known for K-pop, K-dramas and cosmetics than for Hyundai or Samsung. What began as a cultural phenomenon has evolved into a formidable global industry.
The Koreans have a term for it: Hallyu, or the Korean Wave. It encompasses the global spread of Korean popular culture, including music, television dramas, food, fashion and K-beauty. These cultural exports have created a virtuous cycle: global popularity fuels curiosity about Korea, which, in turn, drives tourism, retail sales and demand for Korean products.
Our tour guides were particularly articulate about the interplay between K-pop, K-beauty and K-tourism. What impressed me was how deliberately these industries have become interconnected. Entertainment creates awareness, cosmetics turn cultural fascination into consumer demand, and tourism allows people to experience the country firsthand.
South Korea has demonstrated that culture need not be merely a reflection of a country’s economic success; it can itself become an engine of economic growth and global influence.
Experiment, succeed, scale up — and repeat
The Korean food scene was a pleasant surprise. Our food tour through Gwangjang Market offered a fascinating glimpse into the country’s culinary traditions, from exotic offerings such as live octopus to an astonishing variety of street food. The market is a world of its own, bustling with energy, colour and aromas.
It also got me thinking: how has a relatively small country developed such a distinctive food culture, markedly different from those of its neighbours, China and Japan, and the wider Southeast Asian region?
My tentative answer is that South Korea has mastered a combination of experimentation, adaptation and the ability to scale up what works.
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| Gwangjang food tour |
The same pattern seems visible across its economy.
Consider Hyundai, whose founder’s story is a lesson in entrepreneurship and ambition. Look at electronics giants such as Samsung and SK Hynix, which have established themselves at the forefront of highly competitive global industries. Or look at K-pop, which has continually reinvented itself to appeal to audiences around the world.
K-pop did not emerge in isolation. Korean television dramas helped create an international audience for Korean culture; Korean music subsequently blended influences from American hip-hop and rock with Korean lyrics and distinctive performance styles. Psy’s Gangnam Style became a global sensation, followed by BTS and an ever-expanding universe of musical groups and fandoms. Today, this cultural influence extends into gaming, comics and other forms of entertainment.
What strikes me is the willingness to keep evolving. Success does not seem to be an excuse to stand still. Instead, it becomes a platform for the next experiment, the next product and the next market.
I suspect that five to seven years from now, the K-pop industry will look quite different from what we see today. That is precisely the point: the model keeps changing, and the ambition is to stay ahead of the curve.
Alpacas, islands and the business of experiences
With Alpacas at Alpaca World
We also took a rather unusual excursion to Alpaca World, a managed alpaca farm, and Naminara, a tourist island with its own distinctive, self-declared micro-nation identity and a commercial tourism model.
Alpacas, of course, are not native to South Korea, and I am generally not a fan of managed animal farms. However, I have to admit that Alpaca World has been developed thoughtfully as a visitor experience.
Naminara, too, was an interesting concept — a destination that has built a distinct identity around an island experience, turning an otherwise ordinary geographical feature into a recognisable tourist attraction.
Both visits offered another glimpse into South Korea’s ability to package experiences, create differentiation and build commercial value around them.
Seoul: A city designed around time and efficiency
Seoul’s infrastructure is phenomenal. The city is extensively connected by subway lines, underground shopping districts and public transport networks that make it possible to navigate a vast and densely populated urban agglomeration with remarkable ease.
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| In Korean Hanbok |
What stood out was the emphasis on convenience and accessibility. Seoul’s urban development reflects elements of the 30-minute city concept, in which everyday necessities, workplaces, public spaces and neighbourhood amenities are intended to be accessible within a relatively short walk or public transport journey.
The rhythm of everyday life reflects this emphasis on efficiency. People commute by metro, pick up breakfast at convenience stores and grab coffee from outlets on the go. Starbucks cafés and convenience-store chains such as 7-eleven are ubiquitous; South Korea’s broader convenience-retail culture is a particularly visible feature of urban life.
There is an unmistakable sense that time is valuable and systems should work efficiently. That mindset, combined with the scale and quality of the city’s infrastructure, makes Seoul an impressive urban experience.
Education is another pillar of the country’s development. South Korea places enormous emphasis on educational attainment, and several of its universities feature prominently in international rankings. The country’s investment in education has helped create the human-capital base needed to sustain its technology-intensive industries and global competitiveness.
A final glimpse of Korea
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| Starlight Library |
As we boarded our flight home, I tried to distil my impressions of South Korea into a few words.
Ambitious. Experimental. Enterprising. Globally minded. Relentless in its pursuit of scale.
Yet, for all its achievements, what struck me was the relative absence of any need to project a false sense of superiority. There is a quiet confidence in a country that has built its capabilities, learned from its experiences and continually sought to improve.
South Korea’s story is not simply about recovering from war or building a few successful conglomerates. It is about a society that has repeatedly reinvented itself — moving from manufacturing to advanced technology, from domestic entertainment to global cultural influence, and from local traditions to internationally recognised consumer experiences.
I came away believing that this country has a bright future, not because of what it has already achieved, but because of its apparent willingness to keep experimenting, adapting and moving forward.
And as Tagore’s words remind us, the lamp that once illuminated the East was never meant to remain extinguished.
South Korea has indeed become a lamp of the East once again.
#Economics #CulturalTransformation #Travel #History #SouthKorea #Seoul
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