Imagine receiving a farm loan approval in minutes instead of weeks, or having your needs anticipated before you even articulate them. This isn’t science fiction—it’s the new reality of customer experience in India. The State of CX India 2025 report, launched collaboratively by Kyndryl, Twimbit, and Nasscom, unveils a remarkable transformation sweeping across Indian enterprises. With the inaugural India CX Index registering 3.17 out of 5, the nation’s businesses are orchestrating a fundamental shift from transactional service models towards deeply personalised, emotion-driven experiences. This isn’t merely about faster service or greater convenience; it’s about creating moments that resonate, relationships that endure, and experiences that customers remember long after the interaction ends.
From Products to Performances: India’s Experience Economy
The landscape of Indian commerce is undergoing a profound metamorphosis. As Manoj Menon, CEO of Twimbit, articulates in the report, businesses are no longer simply selling products—they’re staging memorable experiences that captivate customers’ imagination. Varnika Goel, Twimbit’s co-founder, points to anticipatory services like six-minute delivery applications as evidence of how dramatically consumer expectations have evolved. Today’s customers don’t just want choice; they expect brands to predict their needs before they arise.
This transformation represents more than technological advancement. It’s a synthesis of India’s cultural heritage—which has long valued empathy and human connection—with cutting-edge digital capabilities. Indian companies are leveraging unified data systems to understand their customers at unprecedented depths, crafting seamless journeys that harmonise technology with the irreplaceable human touch. The shift towards proactive, anticipatory service is fundamentally redefining what customers expect and what businesses must deliver to remain competitive in this rapidly evolving marketplace.
Intelligence Amplifying Empathy: The True Role of AI
Whilst artificial intelligence dominates conversations about modern customer experience, the report’s findings reveal a nuanced reality: technology serves as an enabler, but empathy remains the cornerstone of genuine CX excellence. Lingraju Sawkar of Kyndryl India highlights transformative examples, such as agricultural lending processes that once consumed weeks now completed in minutes, demonstrating how AI can scale empathetic service whilst simultaneously reducing operational costs.
Ankit Goenka from Bajaj General Insurance showcases practical implementation through their multilingual chatbot, which successfully manages over 40% of call-centre enquiries and processes 76% of cashless claims. However, industry leaders emphasise a critical distinction: automation must enhance rather than replace human interaction. The most effective implementations ensure AI systems intuitively recognise when complex issues require personal intervention, seamlessly transferring customers to human agents who can provide nuanced support.
Organisations are increasingly prioritising unified CX governance frameworks that ensure consistency across technology platforms, operational processes, and service delivery channels. This holistic approach prevents the fragmented experiences that plague many digital transformation initiatives, creating instead a cohesive journey that feels intentional and thoughtfully designed at every touchpoint.
Culture and Design: The Human Foundations of Excellence
The report underscores that India Inc.‘s CX progress extends far beyond technological investment—it’s fundamentally rooted in organisational culture and design philosophy. Shaon Sengupta from Kyndryl captures this perfectly: whilst technology enables experiences, humanity is what delivers true excellence. The highest-performing companies invest substantially in training programmes that empower employees and cultivate cultures of innovation where creative problem-solving thrives.
Design-led experiences that integrate authentic brand purpose create trust and forge emotional connections, transforming routine interactions into memorable encounters. The report identifies emotional design as the emerging frontier, where customer journeys evoke meaningful memories that transcend mere transactions. This cultural commitment to empathy, active listening, and genuine care distinguishes India’s CX leaders in an increasingly digitised world.
The State of CX India 2025 study benchmarks 400 companies across 10 industries, establishing India’s first National CX Index through evaluation of four critical pillars: digital experience, service experience, brand experience, and employee experience. Top performers include ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel, The Oberoi Group, and Myntra—organisations recognised for consistently delivering superior customer experiences. Yet the report reveals a sobering reality: whilst 89% of companies claim to compete on experience, only 8% of customers rate their experiences as excellent, highlighting the substantial gap between aspiration and execution.
Leaders like Indranil Mukherjee from PVR INOX emphasise that empathy, not merely technology, transforms experiences and fuels sustainable business growth. As Indian enterprises continue evolving from transactional interactions towards highly personalised, emotionally resonant experiences, they’re crafting a unique approach that combines AI automation, inclusive design, and robust organisational culture. This distinctive blend of intelligence and humanity positions India at the forefront of global CX leadership, where experience itself becomes the ultimate differentiator for businesses pursuing excellence in an increasingly customer-centric economy.