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The pomp and circumstance of British Raj collided with cricket, doses of the reality of poverty, a dash of environmental conservation, mixed in with innovation in 21st Century India, to make the weeklong maiden visit of Britain’s Duke and Duchess of Cambridge one-of-a-kind.
Prince William and Kate Middleton who arrived in Mumbai April 10, kicked off two days of hectic activity in the financial capital starting with a paying homage to victims of the 26/11 terrorist attack in 2006 at the Taj Palace hotel, participating at a charity cricket match with underprivileged children, meeting Bollywood stars and being feted at the Taj Palace hotel with the choicest Indian delicacies. They met children from Magic Bus, Childline and Doorstep – three non-governmental organisations that work with children, took an open-top bus tour, and played a cricket match with a team from a local cricket academy, Reuters reported.
Sporting a red, white and blue summer dress created by designer Anita Dongre, and sunglasses, at the famed Oval Maidan, the Duchess confidently swung at a ball thrown by none other than Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, only to be caught out. Other cricket luminaries present included cricketer Dilip Vengasarkar.
The British royals then headed for the around 900-year-old Banganga Tank at the Malabar Hill, constructed in 1127 by the Silhara dynasty rulers of the then Thane kingdom, Indo Asian News Service reported. They were presented with garlands and flowers, after which the couple showered petals in holy reservoir.
Later the same day, the royal couple attended a Bollywood-inspired charity gala where Kate wore another Indian-inspired royal blue creation. Superstars like Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to young talent like Parineeti Chopra and Huma Qureshi greeted the young royals. Dixit described the couple as “gracious and down to earth.”
They rounded off the Mumbai leg of their journey meeting budding entrepreneurs at the Young Entrepreneurs Event at The Social, a cafe which is also a collaborative workspace for emerging business talents. They ceremonially launched the Tech Rocketships Awards, tried their hand blindfolded, at Braille writing, and Prince William tried his hand at a Formula E racing car simulator developed by Indian automobile giant, Mahindra & Mahindra.
“Being here today, it is clear that India is leading the way in so many areas of innovation and technology,” Prince William is quoted saying in media reports. “He’s a real competitor,” Anand Mahindra, CEO, tweeted on the encounter.
On April 12, the Duke and Duchess met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House, designed by famous British architect Sir Edward Lutyens, for a musical soiree-cum-luncheon. It was headlined by santoor player Rahul Sharma, who rounded off his performance with a rendition of the Beatles classic “Let It Be”. The same day, they visited a shelter of the Salaam Baalak Trust that provides support and shelter for street kids in Delhi and Mumbai. At the capital, they hit all the memorials usually on the list of visiting dignitaries — Gandhi Smriti and India Gate where they placed a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti. As with other visiting heads, the Duke and Duchess visited the British High Commissioner’s residence where they cut a cake to mark the forthcoming 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth and read a message from the Queen to the people of India.
On April 12 evening, the couple arrived to a red carpet welcome at Salonibari airport in Tezpur, Assam, received by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, his wife Dolly Gogoi and senior officials of the state government. A number of cultural troupes welcomed them and performed for their benefit at the airport. Traditional sweets and delicacies like laru, pitha, patot diya mas (fish steamed in banana leaf), chungat diya mangsho (meat cooked inside bamboo shoot) were served.
They headed directly to the Kaziranga National Park in a convoy of vehicles under tight security. School children lined up in hundreds outside the airport in Tezpur to have a glimpse of the royal couple, Indo Asian News Service reported.The Kaziranga National Park was put under tight security as the royal couple went to stay the night at Difflo River Lodge adjacent to the national park. They went on a jeep safari in the western range of Bagori for around two hours and interacted with some of the forest guards. Senior park officials gave a presentation to the couple on the flora and fauna of the national park, the one-horned rhinos and park management.
Meanwhile, Agra was gearing up to receive the royal visitors on April 16, with tightened security in the tourist complex along Fatehabad road leading to the Taj Mahal. Hoteliers told Indo Asian News Service local intelligence officials had directed them not to rent out rooms to visitors from Pakistan, Iraq, Iran, Turkey and other Islamic State (IS)-affected countries.
The route from Kheria airport to the Taj Mahal is being spruced up, but Archeological Society of India Superintending Archaeologist Bhuvan Vikram said the scaffolding around the minarets would not be dismantled. Maintenance work would also continue. A 70-year-old local photographer Surendra Sharma has sought the district administration’s permission to present the royal couple an album of Queen Elizabeth’s visit to the Taj Mahal back in 1961, Indo Asian News reported. Officials said the young royals will spend nearly two hours at the Taj Mahal, which Prince William’s late mother, Princess Diana of Wales, paid homage to in February 1992.
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