AGE 64: Narendra Modi

Prime minister of India

What makes him powerful: Prime Minister Modi is turning over a new leaf for India. The country's stock index is at record highs. Since he entered office last May, Modi has reworked the government's budget, made bank accounts more accessible to everyone, made advances in reforming labor laws, transformed the government into a more transparent and open place, and formed positive relationships with China, Japan, and the US.

He's a political figure who's putting people's faith back in India, and he's utterly beloved by the people of India. He won the May 2014 election by a landslide, and since then he's kept people's faith in him through his initiatives both home and abroad. He's also one of TIME's most influential people of 2015.