WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday night welcomed Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is in Washington for the first state visit under the Obama administration.
The first state dinner of Obama’s administration was an evening of regal pageantry and symbolic politics in a tent on the White House South Lawn.
“The future beckons to all of us,” Obama said with a glass raised toward his guest of honor. “Let us answer its call. And let our two great nations realize all the triumphs and achievements that await us.”
Singh praised his host’s leadership and prompted applause by citing the charm of the US first lady.
Obama’s election was “an inspiration to all those who cherish the values of diversity, democracy and equal opportunity,” Singh said, adding that India “warmly applauded” the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Obama this year for “the healing touch you have provided and the power of your idealism and your vision.”
“As two leading democracies, India and the United States must play a leading role in building a shared destiny for all humankind,” said Singh.
Singh, who met privately with Obama on Tuesday, is unique among Indian leaders, wrote C. Raja Mohan, a Washington-based columnist for the Indian Express newspaper. “In the past, it was all about post-colonial issues. But Singh has really taken us beyond that. It’s not just that we are poor, Third World, and the West is sitting on us. Singh is signaling that we have a comfort level with the US that no one else has, and the US should see that.”
The Tuesday dinner showed Obama’s intention to signal strong ties with the world’s largest democracy and go his own way in navigating the pomp and tradition of White House customs.
A tradition dating back to 1874, state dinners are the most treasured and formal honor a US president can offer a foreign dignitary, and the most coveted invitation in Washington.
Rather than the standard gathering of about 130 in the State Dining Room, the Obama’s welcomed some 400 guests in a huge tent with clear panels that highlighted the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial.
Guests with ties to India included Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican, author Deepak Chopra, director M. Night Shyamalan, CNN Media Correspondent Sanjay Gupta, Obama’s first choice for the post of US Surgeon General, and A.R. Rahman, who won an Oscar for the score of “Slumdog Millionaire.”
Guests dined at tables for 10 with apple-green linens, part of décor that the White House said “reflect the Obamas’ dedication to green and sustainable elements.”
Deep purple flowers on the tables were meant to evoke the state bird of India, the peacock. The menu included both American and Indian flavors throughout the five-course dinner, which offered a vegetarian chickpea and okra option to the main course plate of green curried prawns.
The First Lady’s gown was an overwhelming success at the first State Dinner of the Obama White House. Michelle Obama’s dress was designed by Naeem Kahn, a fashion designer born in India. She wore a match wrap, a stack of bangle bracelets on her wrist and dangling earrings.
Kahn was born in India, and moved to the US as a teenager. He apprenticed at Halston and Riazee. In 2003 he started his own line, and in just six years, is dressing celebrities such as Queen Noor of Jordan and US signer Jennifer Lopez.
Earlier Wednesday, Mrs. Obama wore a skirt by Rachel Roy, also an Indian-American. “That gave us a preview that she was going to use clothes to convey a meaning,” Mary Tomer, author of the new book “Mrs. O: The Face of Fashion Democracy,” told reporters.
