Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday delivered a 75-minute Independence Day address from the ramparts of the Red Fort, making it his shortest speech in the past four years and the fourth shortest of his Independence Day addresses overall.
The 2026 address was significantly shorter than his record 103-minute speech delivered last year. The duration of PM Modi’s Independence Day addresses has varied considerably since he first took office in 2014.
In 2025, PM Modi delivered his 12th consecutive Independence Day address from the Red Fort, with the speech lasting 103 minutes, making it his longest Independence Day address at the time. During the address, he spoke on a range of issues concerning India’s national interests and announced several
schemes.
The 2025 speech surpassed the previous record set by PM Modi in 2024, when he delivered a 98-minute address during his first Independence Day speech after returning to office for a third consecutive term.
PM Modi’s Independence Day speeches have varied in duration since he first addressed the nation from the Red Fort in 2014. His inaugural speech as prime minister lasted nearly 65 minutes. His 2017 address was his shortest, at just under an hour, while he spoke for 83 minutes in 2018 and 92 minutes in 2019, the first Independence Day address of his second term. His 2023 speech lasted nearly 90 minutes.
The 2025 address also marked a milestone in terms of consecutive Independence Day speeches. PM Modi surpassed former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s record of 11 consecutive addresses from the Red Fort.
Indira Gandhi addressed the nation from the Red Fort 16 times in total during her two terms in office — from 1966 to 1977 and from 1980 to 1984 — including 11 consecutive addresses.
Only India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, has delivered more consecutive Independence Day addresses than Modi, with 17 consecutive speeches between 1947 and 1963.
PM Modi, who began delivering his Independence Day address from the Red Fort in 2014, had also surpassed former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s record of 11 consecutive addresses.
