Still, the government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh appears to be counting on their support. Many of those in their 20s or younger were born just before or after the country began introducing free-market policies and opening its economy to greater trade and foreign investment in the early 1990s. Last month, Mr. Singh invoked the benefits of accepting foreign retailers for the young in a rare address to the country to defend the change in policy.

“Foreign companies are creating jobs for our youth — in information technology, in steel, and in the auto industry,” he said. “I am sure this will happen in retail trade as well.”

India’s youth grew up during a time when foreign brands like Coca-Cola, Suzuki and Levi’s became touchstones across the country. Some foreign companies have become ingrained in the fabric of Indian culture. For instance, many Indians now serve Cadbury milk chocolates at religious festivals, along with traditional sweets.

Moreover, unlike their parents, today’s young people were not as indoctrinated by their schools and families to believe in swadeshi, a slogan that roughly means self-sufficiency and that was championed by freedom fighters like Mohandas K. Gandhi during their struggle against Britain.

“Now, the consumers are essentially the young generation who are a post-’80s product,” said Shaibal Gupta, member secretary of the Asian Development Research Institute, a research group based in Patna. “The people born in the ’60s and ’70s had some idea about the freedom movement,” but the newer generations do not.

Still, retail analysts say change will come slowly to India’s $500 billion retail industry, more than 90 percent of which is still dominated by small family-owned stores. Young Indians do not yet have as much purchasing power as their parents, for one thing, though because many live with their families they often have disposable income to spend on goods like clothes and cellphones.