I’ll admit to not being completely up to speed on India’s Cold War relations, but it never appeared to me they were hard line anti-Western. Truth be told, you touched on a major reason why they could have gone that route. Today they aren’t what I would call rabid anti-Britain or the West.
In Russia’s hemisphere and not as militarily prepared for war as Russia, India had to do somewhat of a tap-dance. I don’t believe they could have come out totally Western without some fear of harassment or retribution. It would seem to me they played it about right.
Yes India did have relations with Russia, but they never acted hard line anti-US.
As for India having scorn for the British, in truth I think there are some things they appreciate that the British handed off to them. Their government seems to function reasonably, and Britain brought that framework to them.
It is reasonable to think India would have some big problems with the occupation, but it hasn’t gone hard line on it. I think India has handled it’s foreign relations rather well.
Perhaps you would like to explain your views on it. I may learn something if you do.
From 1857 to 1919 (the British Empirial heyday), Britain had only about a few thousand bureaucrats and in essence ruled through accomodation with the locals -- they knew enough not to be harsh
Indians more or less viewed them as their own, until 1919 and the Jallianwala Bagh massacre when their belief in the English idea of fair play was shattered
Even post independence, there was a love-hate relationship, more like friends with a past than anything.