First State Dinner of Obama's administration in honor of Indian Prime Minister
Among the many surprises President Obama has given the Indian-American community
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama welcome Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur to the White House in Washington and for that matter, India as a whole, his recent state dinner topped it all.
Despite the fact that Obama has installed numerous Indian Americans in his administration and personally lit the diya at the White House Diwali celebration in October, not many would have expected to see a shamiana on the South Lawn of the White House, or hear the thumping "Jai Ho" beat and vigorous Bhangra dancing there.
But that was exactly what the President and First Lady offered up when they hosted their first state dinner for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the night of November 24.
Another highlight of the evening was Prime Minister Singh getting to sit with his daughter, human rights activist Amrit Singh.
The lavish celebration quite impressed the Indian leader, who called it "magnificent." Singh said, "It was a unique experience. The dinner was lavish and extravagant. The atmosphere and the layout were outstanding."
"President Obama and his wife laid out one of the best dinners and went out of their way. The people who had come in and the gathering in itself is a statement," said Singh, visibly impressed with the all-out effort by the Obama administration to put on an unforgettable show in Washington. "It was a great experience and I enjoyed being there. It was one of the best dinners that I have attended," Singh commented. "There was a gathering of many distinguished guests at the dinner. People who are eminent and form the crust of the society. It was a pleasure to meet them all and to be in their company." "At the dinner, there were a number of people of Indian origin who have made a mark on their own - a number of distinguished Indians who have done us proud," Singh said.
"This in itself is reflective of President Obama's personality. In this gathering of distinguished people, especially people of Indian origin, I felt proud to be an Indian."
"Night Shyamalam and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen (who sat at the First Lady's table along with his spouse, Emma Rothschild), attended the banquet, along with New York community activist Seema Agnani. Their body language - it was truly from the heart. And they both [Singh and Obama] seemed to be working together."
Among the attendees were numerous Indian Americans working in the Obama administration. Preeta Bansal, who worked closely with President Obama's transition team and is now counsel at the Office of Management and Budget, said, "The atmosphere was festive, people were really having a very good time.
They were really just enjoying each other's company. I felt in a really personal way that it was a coming together of East and West. You felt the personal chemistry between them [Obama and Singh]. These were two people who genuinely admire each other, respect each other and like each other. I felt at least from the President's side, I could just see how comfortable he was with the Prime Minister - same thing with Mrs. Obama," she said.
Noting the number of Indian American appointees in the President's team, Bansal, who was among the key people involved with personnel placement in the Obama administration, said they were selected because they were the most qualified for their jobs. "First of all, we were looking above all, for very qualified people. And we happened to find them from a very diverse community. It's a new generation. It shows the maturation of the second generation of Indian Americans and the political engagement of the community," she said.
Hotelier Chatwal said he was responsible for bringing in the Bay Area Empire Bhangra group that performed at the event. "They sang three wonderful typical Punjabi songs and Bhangra; and then A.R. Rahman came with `Jai Ho,' " he said. "The dinner was something unique," Chatwal added, "It was the first time the First Lady dressed up in Indian dress and Punjabi churiyan (bangles). And the most amazing thing was the food. We started with eggplant and arugula salad, then lentils with cheese, then potato dumpling. Only one dish was non-vegetarian, which was shrimp," he noted.
Guests navigated their way to avoid the soggy and muddy path on the South Lawn of the White House, much like an Indian wedding after a rainy night.
The sides of the tent were open so guests had a view of the majestic Oval Office. Silver columns every few feet held large glass vases filled with water and floating candles. Interestingly, there was no "head" table. The President sat next to Gursharan Kaur, Prime Minister Singh's wife, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Others at his table were PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi, Sen. John Kerry, DMass., House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeff Katzenberg and the President's top campaign strategist and current Senior Advisor, David Axelrod.
