On the road with Namo

Trying to keep up with a man who barely sleeps is exhilarating as well as exhausting

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' I , BY l PAWAN LUTHRA

Never did I imagine that I would be in three cities in two days tracking the Indian Prime Minister.

I was there as he entered through the metal doors at a private reception fo r the Indian community, prior to his historic address to over 16,000 delirious fans at the rlliphones Arena in Sydney. I also bel.ieve that I was the onl y person who captured his final wave as he wallced away through the glas.s doo r at the side after the state dinner hosted b y PM Tony Abbott ar the MCG.

M y humble camera captures bodi these moments, albe.it badly. Between these two moments, 1 followed d1e frenzied build -up to his vis it co Australia as hordes of Indian media descended on Sydney, for an event expected to. surpass the Indian PM's American address at the Madi son Square Gardens. The morning of 17 November dawned bright and clear, and I am sure the organisers could have filled out the 50,000 p lu s seats at the Sydney Cricket Ground with people wanting a glimpse of this man known for his winning oratory.

After finishing late at night at the Ailphones Arena in SycL1ey, 1 took a n early morning Right to Canberra co w itnes~ Prime Minister Modi receive the guard of honour from the Australian Federation Guard made up of members of the Royal Australian Navy, Australian Arm y and Royal Australian Air Force. The canons boomed in die front court of the Parliament H o use as Australia's finest honoured the Indian Prime Minister, v,;-lule hordes of Australian Indians cheered on from the sid es

The public gallery at the Australian Pacliament Chamber was overflowing w ith invited guests who sat quietl y waiting for the official p roceedings to begin at 10 05 am.

As P1,[ Modi entered, escorted by the Sergeant at Arms, d1e gallery could not restrain their applause.

Mr Modi spoke eloquently in his third language of English (after Gujarati and Hindi). While his address had ligh t- hearred moments, which had die Parliamentarians laughing politely, he also hardened his tone as he made clear that all countries, including China, have to Jive peacefully in the East As ia region. Ir bodes well for the Australia-India relationship that he got mobbed by the Australian MPs on his way out.

Later, as T crisscrossed m y way to Me lbourne via Sydney (as all flights to l'v[elboume &om Canberra had been booked out) , I could see Air India One (also referred to as Al- 1 or AIC001 ) on the tarmac at Canberra airport Thought abom asking for a lift (hey, fellow Indian to fellow I ndian, why not?), but decid ed against it as I saw the heavy Special Protective Group (SPG) out in full force.

M y d1ird c i ty in a day got me to Melbourne for a business leaders' meet and then a community meetand-greet at Government House.

The Grand Hall was overflowing again, and it seemed the Modi Express had travelled in reverse, bringing Sydneysiders south to Melbourne.

While PM Modi was being feted by the corporate gurus in a private session, other stalwarts such as those &om the field of sports got a chance to do so at d1e less fo rmal community meet. The chants of " Modi! Modi!" were heard yet again from the crowds, even though d1is tinie rmmd, Modi appeared more subdued.

\'v'as it a deliberate attempt to show less bravado and more restraint, to fit the occas ion? Or was it a to uch of exhaustion, given the hectic schedules of the past few days?

Perhaps in Sydney the ability to talk in H.indi gave him a natural flow, and the sheer occas ion of Canbe rra brought o u t the orator in him But the tank seemed a bit empty in Melbourne.

Yet at the hallowed grounds of the MCG, PM Modi cook some time to "examine" the pitch. I almost expected him to take d1e ke ys out of his pocket to rest the softness and dampness on the pitch to g ive the Indian cricket team a heads - up as what to expect when they p lay there on Boxing Day But in the spirit of fair play, or perhaps in fear of being shirtfronred b y Tony Abbott on this unsporting gesture, he resolved instead to simply enjoy the n1C>ment.

At the reception that followed, one could hear the quiver in the voice of Prime 1'Iini ster Abbott. Wonder if the Indian TV stations played Dire Stea.its' 'Brothers in Arms' as Tony Abbott and arendra Modi gave each other a hug Modi's demeanour also cracked as he felt the genuine affection in the room.

The Private Members Dining area was anytb.ing but private as die State Banquet hosted by PM Tony Abbott brought out the corporate e lite, the Indian Australian community, academics and business leaders The evening went imo wind-down mode wi th entertainment from The String Divas and Circus Oz.

To bon our tlie Indian Prime Minister the trio from The String Diva belted out the tm official national anthem of India, '.Jai Ho' And while be no doubt enjoyed this number, it was the ABBA song 'i\famma M ia' wh ich had his host Tony Abbott d o a jig 011 his seat. One almos t expected him to ask Modi to join .in a b it of a dance, but tmfortuuacely there were no garba sticks availab le to create this ABBA - Falguni Pathak fusion.

Mr Modi had a quizzical lo o k on his face as the medley of ABBA songs continued (yes, my camera did capture that) and he was thankful for tlie diversion by Estelle Parker from DFAT w ho got his attention. She had been in charge of raking care of Mr Modi when he vis ited in 2001 and wanted to say hello. Much to her delight, he r emembered her and warmly rook both her hands in his as he introduced her to Mr Abbott.

Even as Mr Modi expressed his gracimde to a friend from 13 years ago, Australia's r ichest person and the world's sixth richest woman, Gina Reinhardt stood patiently b y co talk ro the two Prim e :Mi n iste rs.

While politics and business minds interacted , tlie two 'Can Do' Prime Ministers (perhaps Commonwealth Bank needs to trade mark ilieir slogan) aho posed for photos w:ith not only Gina Reinhardt but yours truly as well. Noc far from chem sat cricket legends from both sides such as Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev, VVS Laxman, Steve Waugh, G lenn McGrath, Michael Kasprowic b, and business figures such as Ashok Jacob, Maw:ice Newman, V is hal Sikka and Manoj Nagpaul. And seemingly the full front bench of the Abbott go\Tetomenr.

And then it was time co go. Show ing amazing dexterity for a 64-year-old man, and with a puffing PM Abbott struggling to keep up (note photo) , Modi, with a wave of his hand, was gone. And so it was veni, vidi, vici - Modi came, saw, conquered - tlie hearts and minds of people down under

Over 80, 000 Indians in Brisbane showed great enthusiasm just to catch a glimpse of PM Modi

As soon as the news spread tbat India's newly elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi was visiting Brisbane to attend the G20 summit, there was a jostle to secure passes ro attend his events and the o f fice bearers of Indian organisations in Queensland had a tough rime p leasing their constituen ts!

Following Mocli's rock star performance a t Madiso n Square Garden in l ew York, Indians in Australia couldn't wait to wimess a repeat performance bere and he sure didn't disappoint.

The Indian support for him in Brisbane was so overwhelming tbat some o pposition leaders back home in India g rudgingly accused PM Mod i of bringing in 'hired crowds'! Even the record temperantres in Brisbane during the weeke nd of the G20 summ it couldn't keep tbe crowds away.

Apart from attending the G20 events, PM Modi's schedule in Brisbane included a visi t to the Queensland U niversi t y of Technology (Q UT) , unveiling Mahatma Gandhi's statue at tl1e Roma Street Parklands and a civ ic reception at the Town HaU.

As soo n as Prime J'vlinister Modi arr ived in Brisbane, he tweeted a picture of the beautiful Brisbane ciry skyline. During hi s v isit to QUT, he was introduced to the vario u s facilities and research programs, including a t our of 'The Cube ' , one of the world's largest i nteractive learning spaces.

PM Modi also inspected Q UT's Agro Robo t, a machi.ne developed as part o f the university's program ro develop robotics techno logy in the agri culrnre sectot

As ked to write a message on d1e Robot, Modi wrote a message in Gujurari, including: "Resear cl1 is the mother of invention.

The develop rn e nt jo urney of mankind is a continuous stream of research."

Meeting with high school students, J)M Modi made a point of acknowl edging former L1clian

Prime Minister Jawahatlal Nehru's birtl1 anniversary, and posed for a series of 'sel fies' A minor controversy empted when some people n oticed that Kashmir was con spicuously absent from the map of Ind ia di splayed at th e event, bur organi5ers apologised fo r tile b lunder the following day.

The television coverage of Ausu-a.lian Prime M:in.ister

To n y Abbott entering the G20 inauguration accompanied by PM Modi '-Vas a clear i ndication of fadia's rising status among the world's most famous and powerful leaders.

At tbe unveiling of tl1e Gandhi statue, PM Modi was introduced as t he 'hottest star of t he h ottest day' , in reference to the soaring Brisbane hear.

While only a handful of passes were issued for the event, those Indians w h o couldn't get in had the chance ro see and hear him from a distance and cheered as he waved at tllem and acknowledged their presence

I t transpired at the unveiling that the idea of a Gandhi memorial in Brisbane was moored by Modi way back in 1999 when he visited Australia as a pri~rate citizen. He warmly ack n owledged tile Indian families who hosted him during his previous visits

He congratulated the G20 organ isers for hosting the mos t peaceful summit ever, keeping in tradition wirn Gandhi's ideology

In bi s brief but mem orable speed1 in Hindi, Prim e Minister l\fodi highlighted how Gandhi's ideals are still relevant today, particularly in rela tio n to me two most pressin g challenges in tile world, namely, terrori sm and climate change.

"I£ we had.n 't exploited Mother Namre the way that we have d o ne, and we bad only used ro d1e extent tllat Mallatma Gandhi had preached, then we would not be faced with these problem s today," Modi s aid.

Ir was indeed a historic and memorable occasion on all counts and o ne tlrnt lnclians in Bri sba ne will remember for a Jong rime to con1e

AttheCivic

Reception he ld in his honour at the Brisbane City Hall on the SLmday evening of the G20 weekend, a large crowd wa ited in anticipation fo r the arr ival of Prime Minister Modi.

1ncligenous Australian and Indian danc ers set the scene fol.lowed by beautiful renditions o f the Indian and Australian national anthems.

Speaking in Englis h, Modi began his speech with the words the people of Brisbane were desperate to hear. "\Vhat an OLltstandin g job. I know that you have often lived in the shadow of Melbourne and Sydney, but you have shown the world w hat a great c ity and host you are," P 1v1 Modi said.

Joined by Campbel.I Newman, Premier of Queensland and Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, the Prime l\llinister expressed delight that his journey i.n Australia began in

Indianlink

Brisbane.

The Reception was a strictl y by invite- o n ly event for both the Indian and Australian communities. Dressed i n traditional attire, peop le made a point of being at the premises at the g iven time of 4pm to get th eir spot for the best view of the Indian Prime Ministe r.

Brisbane C ity Hall also seemed to welcome tl1e Indian community and the Prime i\1inister, with the ceiling lit in the colours of the Indian Aag

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk welcomed the people and the Indian Prime i\tiinister Nare ndra Modi " T his is a proud land where the G20 was conducted, also where a peaceful assembly and rights of democracy have b een exercised."

"Prime l'vti nister Narendra Modi, the people see you as a man on whom they rest their hope, destiny and aspirations. You know you are carry ing the responsibility of their unprecedented support "

The Lord i\fayor continued by saying that there is an unusual relationship between Brisbane and H yderabad, and the cities have " recomm itted co the relationship co ensure that India and Australia continue co grow in strength"

Premier of Queensland Campbel.I ewman acknowledged people of Indian descent and highlighted tbe similarities between India and Australia.

"It's an honour to be reaffi rmed wit h the Honorary lndian of tl1e Year title by the Indian communi ty here. \Ve sh are the same r ational Day,January 26, and then there is c ric ket "

Fans cheered as Indian Prime Minister Modi cook co the podimn. "Queensland i s in tl1e forefront of the relationship between Australia and India, and th e credit o f this long partnership between Indian a nd Queensland goes to you, Premier Newman and Lord Mayor," PM Modi said.

"Queens land has emerged as an area of major growth in resournes to power Indian's dev elopment. It is also a major destination of Indian investments - you have supported partnerships io education and skills "

"The friendship and understanding an1ong business and academic leaders from India d emons trates a strong partnership witl1 Australia, e,specialJy Queen sl and," PM Modi continued.

" Brisbane has emerged as a cen tre of advanced technol ogy, as H yderabad is also known as 'Cyberabad' These two c ities have a sister-city relationship and I truly welc ome the engageme n t betwee n states and cities. l am very keen w im7olve states i n India w ith international engagement."

Tal king about the new wave in India, Modi said, " This is an exci ting moment in India, £illed w ith optimism, a n era of change and progress and the prospect co achieve, cl riven b y the energy and enterprise of o ur yo u th This is the time to forge pl\.ftnerships i.n India."

An excited Fatema, who has been in Bri sban e for only a few months, said, "l am extremely overjoyed to see our Indian Prime Mi.ni scer Nareodra Modi. It was an inspiring speech and I was p leasantly surprised to h ear him speak in English, I would have loved co hear more."

"le is nice co get cl ose and personal with an eminent political figure, and w ith the L1dian Prime Ministe r's v isit to Australia, it will definitely strengthen the alliances of both th e colmtries," said Anuj Sodha.

For Shobha Rawal w ho has lived in Brisbane for 44 years, "Seeing l arendra J\fodi is a w i sh come true. I tl1oroughl y enjoyed his speech and it i s good to see progress a nd relationship between both the countries."

J\tul Bhardwaj, w is hed the Indian Prime iviinister the very best, "''Y,/e as Ind ians have l ots of hopes and asp irations rested on him," he said. "He wiU march our country into the funrre shoulder to shoulder with the b ig powers "