India von Halkein arrived in Springfield in 1984, after her stepmother, Alexandra Spaulding, left her father, the Baron von Halkein of Andorra. The history thus far was that Alex and the Baron had a marriage of convenience, unbeknownst to India. Alex married to gain a title and the Baron gained a little money in the process. India always felt that something was missing and that Alex really didn't care for her father and after Alex left him, India found out that her father was broke. India blamed everything on Alex and vowed revenge, so she set out for Springfield to wreak havoc on Alexandra. While India hitchhiked into town in the pouring rain, a car happened by and a handsome young man offered India a lift to a nearby inn. Intrigued, India seduced the man, whom she knew as only Phillip. A little while later, Phillip would introduce her to his "Aunt Alex" who was none other than Alexandra. India instantly saw dollar signs and a way to get back what she felt was rightly hers and her father's. One day, India overheard Phillip and Andy Ferris talking about an explosion in Lujack and Floyd Parker's nightclub. Phillip had hired Andy to sabotage the club but Andy went too far by blowing up the club and causing the blindness of Phillip's former fiancée, Beth Raines. India had this conversation recorded and realized that she could use the tape to blackmail Phillip into marriage.

Unfortunately, Warren Andrews learned about the tape which he later removed from India's handbag. When Phillip turned down India's proposal, India pulled out the tape and was shocked when it contained nothing but easy-listening music. India realized what Warren had done and slept with him. India then stole the tape back while Warren was in the shower. Warren went to Phillip and told him about the tape and India's blackmail plan. Phillip destroyed the tape but India had made copies so Phillip was forced to marry India. However, Phillip refused to consummate the marriage or in any way show affection to India. Though he believed that she was only after his money and nothing more, India had actually fallen in love with Phillip. Meanwhile, Alexandra told Warren, her former lover, that she'd get back together with him if he could get her the tape. While Phillip was out of town with his new secretary, India decided to destroy every copy of the tape. Unfortunately, Andy saw her and stole the original. India discovered it was missing when she played the tape and heard only Andy's voice taunting her. Andy then wanted $500,000 from Warren for the tape but Alex only agreed to pay Andy $5,000 and not a penny more.

Meanwhile, in January 1985, Phillip returned and told India that he received her letter telling him that she would give him the tape. Unfortunately, Andy had the tape and Warren and Alex were each trying to get their hands on it, so Phillip told India that they could work together and get the tape back. Phillip offered Andy $500,000 for the tape and Andy agreed but later, Andy knocked Phillip out and stole the money. After Andy was arrested for this crime, Alex bailed him out and gave him money to leave town. She also gave the money back to Phillip but kept the tape. She said that she'd turn it into the police if India didn't leave town. However, Phillip, who had started to be impressed by India, stopped India and came up with a plan to get Alex off their backs. Phillip falsely announced India's pregnancy at Alex's Valentine's Party. In the meantime, Andy showed up at the party to incriminate Phillip in the explosion. Suddenly the lights went out and Andy was killed. When the lights came back on, the tape was gone and Lujack was standing over Andy's body with the gun in his hand. With Alex more determined than ever to run her out of town, India was more desperate than ever to cement her bond with Phillip.

Conveniently an old family friend, Dr. Lyon, came visiting, and India employed the services of his never-fail love potion (sort of a gypsy version of Viagra). India began to mega-dose Phillip with the potion in hopes of making their previous baby announcement come true. Unfortunately, before India's desires came true, Phillip became ill from the potion and was rushed to Cedars. Not long after, Beth and Floyd Parker searched Phillip and India's house to look for evidence that India killed Andy and Beth found the vial containing the aphrodisiac and had it analyzed. Beth wrongly realized that India had lied about being pregnant (it was actually Phillip's lie) and was now trying to "trick" Phillip into making it a reality. She also learned that the vial contained strychnine! Beth told Phillip about the poison and he threw India out of the house. India now needed the tape so that Phillip would take her back. Just as India was about to grab the tape, someone grabbed her from behind. The kidnapper turned out to be Floyd and he was going to set India up as the murderer. Phillip and Beth found India and rescued her - and Floyd tried to convince them that India had killed Andy by telling them that India had written a confession. Beth left to find Lujack, who was outside in the woods. Floyd told Phillip and India that he had the tape and it would incriminate them both and they'd go to prison. In the end, India erased the tape and Floyd was arrested. To India's surprise, Phillip put off the divorce proceedings, put India in charge of the Spaulding Foundation, and finally consummated their marriage.

In November, India became depressed over her dying relationship with Phillip and boarded a train headed for Seattle. A young man named Simon, who was a Steward on the train, became fascinated with India and started romancing her. They slept together but India decided to go home and settle things with Phillip. Phillip took her back and as they headed for the bedroom, Simon arrived. India bribed him to leave but he only took enough money for a hotel room. Not long after, Simon got a job at the Blue Orchid performing magic. He told Alex that he had visited the von Halkein castle and Alex was suspicious. India was worried that Alex would discover that she and Simon had met and then Alex would have ammunition to get her away from Phillip. When Alex caught them dining together, Simon stunned Alex with the revelation that he was Brandon Spaulding's son, therefore her brother. In January 1986, Phillip finally caught them in an embrace and realized that they'd been having an affair. Phillip asked for a divorce but let India stay in charge of the Foundation. Believing Simon would marry her after her divorce, India agreed and she and Phillip amicably parted ways. Unfortunately for India, Simon refused to marry her because he was in love with Jessie Matthews. Although India tried to blackmail him into marriage, she didn't succeed and was alone again.

Later, India learned that her father was fatally ill and embezzled money from the foundation in order to help her father in Andorra.In the meantime, India was shocked to learn that Simon was an imposter after all—he was not Alexandra's brother! Meanwhile, India's assistant Peggy Gault (who India treated badly) suspected India's crime and informed reporter Fletcher Reade about it. Fletcher investigated by breaking into India's apartment. After finding proof of the embezzlement, Fletcher confronted India at the Blue Orchid. Unfortunately, Calla Matthews, who wanted India's job, overheard the conversation and turned on a microphone so everyone heard India admit her guilt. Phillip was furious and immediately called the police. Though Phillip wanted India to remain in prison, Alex, to prevent a scandal, bailed India out and paid her $ 500.000 to leave town quietly. Unfortunately, India had to stay because the judge sentenced her to a month of community service at the Stony Lake Reformatory, a center for juvenile delinquents.

While there, India met Dorie, an 11-old orphan who tugged at her heart despite the fact that both couldn't stand each other at first. Meanwhile, India didn't want her father to learn of her arrest, so she tried to escape with Dorie's help. However, when India arrived at the airport, Dorie followed her and asked to join her to her trip to Andorra. Although India refused, she had no choice since the plane was about to take off. Now arriving home, India not only saw her father but also Alan Spaulding, Phillip's father, who was declared dead two years earlier. Alan was in cahoots with Leo and had the embezzled money transferred to Switzerland to use it to get his power back. India urged her father to drop Alan but Leo wanted her to marry Alan. Meanwhile, Leo's state of health got worse, and while he was drinking one evening, a confused Leo thought Dorie was India and told her the whereabouts of the long-lost Halkein gold. He then collapsed and India signed papers to get him hospitalized. At this point, Alan decided to return to Springfield and, since he offered to help India get released for good, India decided to follow him. She also vowed to protect Dorie and confessed her love for the girl, whereupon Dorie told her about the gold that was in the cornerstone of the von Halkein castle. Back in Springfield, India asked Maeve for help and they convinced HB to drop the theft charges against India—since it was HB's jet that they commandeered to get to Andorra.

Later, India was accused of kidnapping Dorie to Andorra, but when Dorie revealed that she went on her own free will, India was let off the hook. Meanwhile, Alan and India smuggled the cornerstone to a local museum in Springfield. Unfortunately, Springfield University art professor Blackburn stole the cornerstone. When India tried to steal it from him, Blackburn knocked India unconscious, shot Phillip, and held his employee Beth Raines hostage on a boat in Stony Lake, which led to Beth's presumed death. Later, while diving in the flooded Stony Lake, Reva Shayne found the Halkein gold and, to India and Alan's shock, Kyle gave it to Andorra's ambassadors. However, India and Alan were able to get the gold back and grew closer in the process. Meanwhile, Dorie turned out to be Dinah Morgan's adoptive-sister Adele and, since India loved Dorie as her own daughter, she wanted to adopt her. But to do so, she needed a legitimate business and so she bought Cachet - an art gallery from Carlo Fontini. Alan forced her to handle stolen art through the business. In 1987, Warren discovered that India was selling "hot" art and wanted one of the masterpieces. Later, as Alan blackmailed Johnny Bauer into be the new courier. India received word that her father's health was poor so she decided to go to Andorra to help him. Warren and Alex offered to buy Cachet and India refused both offers. Finally Alex, told India that she knew all about the art scam and that the only way to protect Phillip and Alan was for her to own Cachet. India signed over the gallery to Alex and returned to Andorra with Dorie.

In 1990, while on vacation on a yacht near the island of Capria, near Mexico, India was thrown overboard by her rich lover and, afterwards, ran into Phillip. After India failed to seduce him, Phillip, who was on the run from the law, admitted to faking his death. Phillip promised India his Spaulding stock if India kept quiet and returned to Springfield to check on Beth. India returned to Springfield and, after trying to get Phillip's assets from Alex by claiming to be Phillip's heir, she finally gave up and helped Phillip get back to town and to Beth. About this time, she also got involved with Gary Swanson but didn't know that he only wanted her money and that he was actually Neill Everest's murderer, for which Phillip was blamed. With a daughter abroad and nothing left for her in Springfield, after Gary was finally arrested and Phillip and Beth reunited, India once again returned to Andorra.

In late 1998, India returned to Springfield soon after Phillip's wedding to Harley Cooper. India, apparently having lost all her money in a divorce settlement to an unnamed man, came to town looking for a rich man to snag. At this point, Dorie was in boarding school and India needed a way to pay for the schooling. After accepting a job at Spaulding and burying the hatchet with Alex, India dated Ross into 1999. After a brief time as lovers, India ended the relationship because she realized that Ross was still in love with his ex-wife, Blake. She then moved into the Spaulding mansion and renewed her old association with Alan after helping Alan rescue Lizzie from Annie Dutton. As thanks for helping rescue his granddaughter, Alan agreed to fund Dorie's school expenses. Later, as the two began to grow even closer, Alan had a heart attack. During his recovery, Alan appointed India to a new position at Spaulding: Executive Ambassador for Spaulding Enterprises. The duties of this were never specified, but the most probable guess is her shaking hands with businesspeople around the world. Despite her and Alan's bond, India disappeared without an explanation.

India returned to Springfield in late 2002 to attend, along with all of Phillip's other ex-wives, the board meeting to determine whether Alexandra or Alan would control Spaulding Enterprises. Despite her closeness to Alan, money won out and a financially strapped India voted for Alex. After the vote, India told Phillip that she had to go back to Andorra because Dorie was getting married. In 2005, India returned again for another Spaulding board meeting. Upset to learn that Alan had supposedly killed Phillip, whom she called the only man she'd ever loved, India went against the Spaulding family and voted in an unexpected CEO--Harley Cooper.