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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Modi’s ‘Melody’ diplomacy stuns the world

Overjoyed investors buy shares of a wrong company after the PM’s gift Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday gifting his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni 'Melody' toffees, reviving the light-hearted "Melodi" wordplay associated with the two leaders on social media. Meloni thanked Modi and shared a video on the social media in which she could be heard saying, “Prime Minister Modi brought as a gift, a very, very good toffee - Melody.” Modi, who was also seen in the video, burst...

Modi’s ‘Melody’ diplomacy stuns the world

Overjoyed investors buy shares of a wrong company after the PM’s gift Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday gifting his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni 'Melody' toffees, reviving the light-hearted "Melodi" wordplay associated with the two leaders on social media. Meloni thanked Modi and shared a video on the social media in which she could be heard saying, “Prime Minister Modi brought as a gift, a very, very good toffee - Melody.” Modi, who was also seen in the video, burst into laughter as Meloni jokingly referred to the "Melody" toffee while showcasing the gift. The hashtag "Melodi", a blend of Modi and Meloni's names, was coined by the Italian prime minister during the COP28 in Dubai in 2023 and later went viral on social media following the warm interactions between the two leaders at global events. Modi, who arrived in Rome on Tuesday, is on the final leg of his five-nation tour to the UAE, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Italy from May 15-20. Modi’s gift not only floored the social media, but also earned gushing gratitude from the manufacturer of the sweet candy, Parle Products, in Vile Parle, Mumbai. “Thank You. Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for taking Parle Melody to the global stage. A proud moment for all of us at Parle Products to see an Indian favourite being shared across borders,” said a social media post from @ParleFamily, a 97-year-old company. Parle Products describes Melody: “Parle Melody brings to you an irresistible layer of caramel on the outside & a delightful chocolate filling inside. Open & pop it in your mouth & relish the unique experience. It won't be too long before you start asking yourself the age-old question "Melody Itni Chocolaty Kyun Hai?”.” Cong Attacks Modi Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and several other Congress leaders also attacked Modi saying he continues his PR even when the economy is suffering. However, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal hit back at Gandhi, accusing him of "hating India" and refusing to tolerate the "global respect" the country has garnered under Modi's leadership. Gandhi, who is on a visit to his constituency Raebareli and Amethi, said on X, "This isn't leadership, it's a gimmick." At a time farmers, labourers, traders and others in the country are all in tears, the prime minister is laughing and making reels while BJP folks are clapping along, the former Congress president said in his post in Hindi. "An economic storm is raging over our heads, and our prime minister is busy handing out candies in Italy!" he said. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge attacked Modi over issues of "rising" prices, unemployment, paper leaks, "dampening" investment and "sinking" Rupee, saying the prime minister continues his PR even as the economy is suffering. Shares turn sweet but the company was mistaken Shares of Parle Industries Ltd saw frenzied buying on Wednesday, surging five per cent to hit the upper circuit limit after Meloni posted the video. Investors wasted no time and flocked to the counter to buy the stock. Shares of the firm jumped to Rs 5.25 - the highest trading permissible limit for the day - on the BSE. On volume terms, 8.57 lakh shares of the firm were traded on the BSE during the day. But, there is a catch! Investors mistook Parle Industries for the maker of Melody toffees. Parle Products, the FMCG major, is the manufacturer of Melody toffees and is not listed on the stock exchanges. Parle Industries Ltd is a diversified commercial services provider, engaged in the business of infrastructure & real estate, and paper, waste paper and allied products. The history of swadeshi toffee is entwined with the country’s Independence and the company, House of Parle was founded in 1928 by Mohanlal Dayal Chauhan, a tailor from Pardi near Valsad, then part of the Bombay Province. As the country was flooded with imported sweets and confectionery, he decided to give it a ‘desi’ touch and flavour, and with a band of 12 workers, he launched the Parle products from a musty old warehouse near Vile Parle east station, when large parts areas of Vile Parle west were still marshes dotted with a few old bungalows and chawls. Later, he visited Germany to master the art of confectionery and returned with machinery worth Rs 60,000 to churn out simple sweets, toffees and locally flavoured Indian confections at affordable prices – willy-nilly challenging the imported British offerings. It was in 1983 that the chocolate Melody toffee. -WITH PTI

NYC proclaims April 14 as ‘B. R. Ambedkar Day’

Updated: Apr 13, 2025

Mumbai/New York: In a historic move, the New York city has declared April 14 as ‘Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar Day’ to honor the Chief Architect of Indian Constitution, gladdening hearts of Indians, especially Dalits in the USA, officials said.

 

The distinction, first ever by a major US city, comes on Dr. Ambedkar’s 134th birth anniversary (Monday) and to recognize the contributions of one of the world’s most transformative champions of equality and civil rights.

 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams made the Proclamation, acknowledging the Columbia University educated Dr. Ambedkar’s towering legacy in advancing democracy, dignity, women’s empowerment and justice for historically marginalized communities.

 

“Dr. Ambedkar — whose message to his followers was ‘educate, agitate, organize!’—advocated against the exploitation of farmers and tenants in India, as well as the social institution of untouchability. He spent the rest of his life fighting for the diversity, equity and inclusion which, collectively, have long defined the five boroughs,” said Mayor Adams.

 

Prominent Indians like New Jersey-India Commission (NJIC)’s Commissioner Deelip Mhaske and President of Foundation for Human Horizon; businessman and Nimit Palace Hotels founder Ashu Singh; ex-Columbia University Prof. Akansha Anand; Dr. Snehal Ukey, originally from Nagpur, and others warmly welcomed Mayor Adams’ initiative.

 

“In 2016, with the support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we initiated the first-ever Ambedkar Jayanti celebrations at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. It continues as one of the most important international observances in the UN,” Mhaske told The Perfect Voice from New York.

 

Another successful campaign was launched in New York for the Special Day to promote Dr. Ambedkar’s legacy while Parliaments in over 100 countries, UN Missions and academic institutions also celebrate his contributions to uplift the depressed sections globally, added Mhaske.

 

Earlier in 2023, Mhaske and others succeeded to co-name the East 63rd Street in Manhattan, NYC, as “Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Way” – the first-ever such dedication in any US street.

 

Since April 2023, New Jersey state’s Jersey City Hall hoists the iconic Dalit Flag – blue with a white Ashoka Chakra in the centre – for the entire month to commemorate Dr. Ambedkar, with over four dozen other events.

 

There are innumerable busts, statues and portraits of Dr. Ambedkar all over US and in public or private institutions where similar celebrations are carried out on all important days linked to the ‘Champion of the Masses’, said Mhaske.

 

Born on April 14, 1891 in Mhow (Central India, now in Madhya Pradesh), Dr. Ambedkar was a prominent freedom-fighter, India’s first Law Minister, the Chief Architect of the Constitution which came into force on Jan. 26, 1950 (now, celebrated as Republic Day).

 

On Dec. 6, 1956, Dr. Ambedkar succumbed to a brief illness at 65 in Delhi, and the next day, his mortal remains were consigned to the flames in a Buddhist cremation at Dadar Beach in Mumbai – with the place now a sacred monument called Chaityabhoomi.


Dr. Ambedkar on a budget in the US (1913-1916):

A bright, wide-eyed, already married young Bhimrao, then 22, landed in the US (1913) to pursue his post-graduations in the hallowed portals of the Columbia University in New York.

 

The opportunity for three years came when he bagged a Sterling Pound 138/year scholarship, launched by Maharaj Sayajirao Gaekwad III of Baroda State.

 

Reaching the US barely months after his father died, Bhimrao survived on a shoe-string spending only $1.10 daily, plus sent some money home, studied mostly on the university campus or other local academic institutions to save time and resources.

 

He completed his MA and PhD in Columbia University, later, a PhD and DSc from London School of Economics, and also became a Barrister-at-Law in the UK, making him one of highest educated Indians of that dark era when India reeled under the British Rule.

 

From abroad, Bhimrao would write scores of letters to his family members, friends and others, sharing his concerns for caste and gender equality, democracy and social justice, liberation and empowerment, etc.

 

All of these later reflected when he drafted the Indian Constitution, which ranks among the finest treatises of its kind in the Democratic world and catapulted Bhimrao into a revered ‘Babasaheb’ for his followers all over.

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