Gulabi Meenakari, black pottery, ittar, Kashmiri carpet among PM Modi's gifts for world leaders at G7 meet

Figurines of Dokra art, pieces of black pottery, bottles of itar, and brooches with meenakari work were among the gifts that PM Narendra Modi presented to leaders of the G7 in Germany. The gifts, meant to display India’s rich cultural heritage, were mostly from Uttar Pradesh with a few from Chhattisgarh and one from Kashmir.

To US president Joe Biden, Modi gifted a pair of cufflinks of gulabi meenakari work with a matching brooch in the GI-tagged art form from Modi’s constituency Varanasi for First Lady Jill Biden. UK PM Boris Johnson was given a tea set from UP’s Bulandshahr hand-painted with platinum metal paint to celebrate the platinum jubilee of the Queen.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was gifted engraved metal pots, crafted with a style called marodi, from Moradabad. Japan PM Fumio Kishida was gifted black pottery pieces from Nizamabad.

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Modi gifted sculptures made of Dokra art from Chhattisgarh based on Indian mythology to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa as well as Argentine President Alberto Fernández. Ramaphosa was gifted a sculpture made in the 4000-year-old art form of casting using non–ferrous metal based on the Ramayana. Fernández’s sculpture was based on Nandi, the mythological bull.

France President Emmanuel Macron was gifted bottles of ittar in a zardozi box from Lucknow made of hand-embroidered khadi silk and satin tissue in the colours of the French National Flag. Italian PM Mario Draghi was gifted a marble Inlay table top from Agra.

To Senegal President Macky Sall, Modi gifted Moonj baskets and cotton durries from Sitapur. And, Indonesia President Joko Widodo was gifted lacquerware sculpture from Varanasi of Lord Ram in his court durbar made on goolar wood.

Canadian PM Justin Trudeau was gifted a hand-knitted silk carpet from Kashmir.