PM Modi in Japan: Praises boy over his fluency in Hindi; signs autograph for him

PTI, May 23, 2022, 5:13 PM IST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday fondly interacted with a boy who was waiting outside his hotel here and praised him for his fluency in Hindi and signed him an autograph in his tricolour drawing.

As Prime Minister Modi arrived at his hotel after landing in Tokyo, a group of children and their parents were waiting to see him with placards, drawings and welcome messages.

Modi interacted with the children and also saw the drawings they had brought with them. He signed autographs for most of them while engaging them in a brief conversation.

He also interacted with a boy, named Rits Kee, who was waiting for him with a drawing of the tricolour.

As Prime Minister Modi bowed to see his drawing, the boy interacted with him in Hindi saying “mera naam Rits Kee hai…. Japan me aap ka swagat hai”. (my name is Rits Kee and you’re welcome in Japan) May I have your signature?” Impressed with his oratory skills and fluency over Hindi, Modi asked him from where he learnt Hindi.

After his brief chat with the prime minister, the boy said that he was very happy as he had got Modi’s signature in his drawing.

“Japan’s Indian community has made pioneering contributions in different fields. They have also remained connected with their roots in India. I thank the Indian diaspora in Japan for the warm welcome,” Prime Minister Modi said on Twitter after his interaction with the community.

Modi, who is visiting Tokyo at the invitation of his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida, will attend the Quad summit on May 24.

US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will also attend the summit.

The Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue comprises India, the US, Japan and Australia.

Noting that Japan is home to nearly 40,000 members of the Indian diaspora, who are an important anchor in India’s relations with Japan, Modi said he looks forward to interacting with them.