Nationalism in India

(i) United struggle : The most important factor  responsible for arousing the sense of nationalism among the Indians was the united struggle against the Britishers.
(ii) Cultural processes : There were also a  variety of cultural processes through which nationalism captured people's imagination.  History and fiction, folklore and songs,  popular prints and symbols, all played a part in the making of nationalism.
(iii) Bharat Mata : The identity of India came  to be visually associated with the image of  Bharat Mata, which was created in 1870 by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, who wrote
‘Vande Mataram' as a hymn to the Motherland. Inspired by the Swadeshi Movement, Rabindranath Tagore painted his  famous image of Bharat Mata.
(iv) Revival of Indian Folklore : The idea of nationalism was also developed by reviving the Indian Folklore.
In late-nineteenth-century India, nationalists began recording folk tales sung by bards and they toured villages to gather folk songs and legends. This was done to promote the traditional culture that had been corrupted and damaged by western forces. It was essential to preserve this folk tradition in order to discover one's national identity and restore a sense of pride in one's past.
(v) Reinterpretation of History : By the end of the nineteenth century many Indians began feeling that to instill a sense of pride in the nation, Indian history had to be thought about differently. The British saw Indians as backward and primitive, incapable of governing themselves. In response, Indians began looking into the past to discover India's great achievements. They wrote about the glorious developments in ancient times. The nationalist historians urged the readers to take pride in India's great achievements in the past and struggle to change the miserable conditions of life under British rule.