As a pure vegetarian and a true Gujarati, the Prime Minister of India loves to eat his native foods like dhokla, fafda, khandvi, and more. While he is a great orator and has big plans for the development of the country, he also makes simple choices in life. If you ask him about some of his favourite meals, it has to be either khichdi or okra kadhi, which are ladyfingers dipped in yoghurt gravy.
With a vision to strengthen ties with other nations, PM Modi is often seen travelling out of the country to meet dignitaries across the globe. Recently, he was joined by his friend and Japanese PM, Fumio Kishida. His Japanese counterpart is here in India for a two-day visit and PM Modi has left no stoned unturned to welcome his guest and treat him to desi specialties.
As per his official Twitter handle, pictures of the two leaders enjoying a glass of lassi and aam panna have been circulating on social media where the two are not just enjoying the summer drink but also trying their hands at churning lassi.
Then, on the Prime Minister’s official Instagram handle, a video of the two supreme leaders of their respective countries were seen bonding over Indian street food. PM Modi and Fumio Kishida are standing at a pani puri stall on a lawn, where they are served a plate of pani puris or gol gappas. The server pours some mint-flavoured water into the pooris, and the attendant guides the Japanese PM on how to eat them. Fumio's smile after the first bite indicates his enjoyment.
After having them, he is offered some more, and he happily says, "Yes, I will try one more." The video is captioned, "My friend PM @fumio_kishida enjoys Indian snacks, including tasty Golgappas." For the unfamiliar, pani puri is a crunchy snack where a thin, fried, crunchy, and round poori resembling a bite-size ball is hollowed out at the top and filled with boiled potatoes and chickpeas, mint water, and sweet tamarind chutney to finish it off, which are then eaten together in one mouthful. While in Mumbai it is called pani puri, in Delhi it is referred to as gol gappas. In Kolkata, one would find puchkas, while the people of Lucknow call it paani ke batashe.