It’s hard to miss in the capital’s heaviest traffic. Some 100 or so rickshaws have been decked out with big pictures of Trump and the Statue of Liberty over the last few weeks. They stand out from the usual fare of ads for coaching classes and herbal remedies, and they make for a bit of a talking point on your way to work.
Soft power on three wheels
The Embassy has been about it on social media: “Freedom is on the move … literally!” they posted, with a side of “Catch them if you can.”
Why this campaign, and why now
Sergio Gor, the U.S. ambassador, made a show of it last month when he introduced the idea. He called it one of several outreach efforts, tying in with a round of cultural events and public doings in a number of countries.
Key signals to watch
There’s some diplomacy in the timing, too. Washington wants to put things right with New Delhi after relations were put on a back foot by Trump’s tariffs on Indian goods. And with Secretary of State Marco Rubio due in town this weekend, the message is meant to be clear.
Why it matters for Delhi commuters
An auto-rickshaw is a good place to put an ad. The back and the canopy give you a lot of visibility at eye level. For the U.S., it’s a way of getting in front of people where they are, not just in some formal room.
With the “Happy Birthday” tag and the kind of imagery everyone knows, you don’t have to think hard to get the point. It’s a way of moving past the nitty-gritty of disputes and into something more values-driven.
How drivers see it on the ground
Then there are the drivers. For them, it’s as much about the practical as the political. Ganesh Kumar, who had one of the posters on his rig, said he was against it at first. “I told them I didn’t want it,” he says. “But then they put it to me: ‘Please let us put (the poster). We’ll give you a packet of tea.'”
Pradeep Kumar was on board because his old canopy was in need of a cover. As for the man on the side of the vehicle? “I know he is Trump. Don’t know much other than that,” one driver put it.
So you have a bit of world politics in a very local space. At a red light, the whole thing is over in a second. On a street full of ads, the American brand is different enough to be noticed and to get some airtime on social media.
The Embassy has made no secret of its plans to put more rickshaws on the road in the coming days. You can expect to see them, and the photos of them, for a while.
Here are the main takeaways at a glance:
– Street campaigns are central to U.S. outreach
– About 100 auto-rickshaws carry the visuals
– ‘Happy Birthday America!’ drives the theme
– Drivers joined for practical, not political, reasons
What comes next
Rubio’s visit will be the next order of business. In the meantime, the rickshaws are there to soften the edges of what has been a tense period. Has it changed anyone’s mind? Hard to say. But in Delhi, it has done the one thing you don’t often get in the middle of a jam: it has made you look twice.
