AMN/ WEB DESK
Diplomats from various countries, members from multilateral organizations, Chinese friends from different walks of life and foreign media joined in the Holi celebrations at Indian Embassy in Beijing as they celebrated the joy of togetherness at the festival of colors.
Indian Embassy led by Ambassador Vikram Misri welcomed around 500 foreign guests as they witnessed the joy and fun in a grand show of India’s soft power which became another occasion for India’s diplomatic outreach. Mr. Misri highlighted the significance of Holi, the social ethos and the festivities associated.
Scintillating performances by Chinese and Indian artists showcasing classical and folk-dance forms of India kept the audience spellbound. Besides the cultural program and sumptuous Indian food, foreigners lived the moment to the hilt in a burst of colors as they smeared each other’s faces with herbal holi colors and danced to the tunes of peppy Indian songs. Leaders from different countries have extended their greetings to the people of India on the joyous occasion. Holi is celebrated by people of various cultures across the world.
The Indian Embassy in China has been actively promoting the soft power connection with other countries specially between India and China. It held the Diwali festival in Beijing in November 2020, celebrated Vishwa Hindi Diwas in March 2021 along with the launch of India@75. Chinese fans of Indian superstar Aamir Khan also held his birthday celebration at the embassy premises in March.
Professor Jiang Jingkui, Head of Hindi Department at Peking University who was a special guest at Vishwa Hindi Diwas program, thinks that language and cultural events are good examples of the potential exchanges between India and China. Speaking about the rough phase in the India-China relations which is in the process of easing out, he said, this is very short period. Both the countries have spent a long time in friendly exchanges and learning from each other throughout history, and cultural exchanges have always played a significant role, he added. In a conversation with Chinese state media, he said that China also needs to learn from India on how to respect, accept and inherit traditional culture in terms of soft power.