Bear Grylls puts PM Modi among world's 'best leaders', says 'the best ones were never the loudest'

In a post shared on X on Tuesday, Grylls wrote, "I've met some of the most powerful leaders in the world. The best ones were never the loudest."

He accompanied the message with photographs of himself with Modi, Obama and Prince William.

The post quickly went viral, sparking a flood of reactions from social media users.

Viral post draws mixed reactions

While many users applauded Grylls' remarks, others offered differing opinions.

"A good leader is not the one who makes the most noise, but the one who stays calm, makes the right decisions, listens to people, and demonstrates leadership through their work," one user commented.

Another user reacted sarcastically, writing, "So very true. The best ones were never the loudest. You probably forgot to mention one more gentleman due to oversight maybe — Donald Trump, the Nobel Peace Prize winner."

Grylls and Modi's 'Man vs Wild' adventure

Grylls' post also revived memories of his widely watched 2019 Man vs Wild special featuring Prime Minister Modi.

Filmed at Uttarakhand's Jim Corbett National Park, the Discovery Channel episode showed the two trekking through dense forests, braving heavy rain, crossing a river on a makeshift reed raft and discussing wildlife conservation and environmental protection.

During the programme, Modi spoke about how spending time in the Himalayas during his youth shaped his outlook on life.

He stressed that humans should coexist peacefully with nature instead of treating it as an adversary.

'My upbringing does not allow me to take a life'

One of the memorable moments from the episode came when Grylls fashioned a makeshift spear as a precaution against wild animals, including tigers.

Modi declined to use it as a weapon, saying, "My upbringing does not allow me to take a life. However, I will hold on to it since you insist!"

Later, during an episode of his radio programme Mann Ki Baat, the Prime Minister revealed that he and Grylls had communicated throughout the shoot using real-time translation earpiece technology, allowing them to converse smoothly despite the language barrier.