In the Lok Sabha earlier this week, Rahul Gandhi ended his dramatic attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi by hugging him. Modi won the no-confidence motion, but the unexpected hug gave rise to hilarious memes and videos.
AIB recalls magic hug
Comedy sketch group AIB, known for its sharp satire, used the Kishore Kumar song ‘Kitne bhi tu karle sitam’ and photoshopped a picture to show a slip stuck on Modi’s back with the message ‘Congress is best.’ Another post referred to the Sanjay Dutt film ‘Munnabhai MBBS’ and his ‘Jaddu ki jhappi’ (magic hug).
Song by East India Comedy
The episode reminded this stand-up comedy group of the popular ‘90s song ‘Tujhe dekha to yeh jaana sanam’. They married the song with the post-hug expressions of the two leaders. Check it out for a good laugh.
Gets butter
Amul butter, with its famous ‘utterly-butterly’ cartoons, was among the first to talk about it. The Amul girl does a Rahul, with the caption reading ‘Embracing ya embarrassing?’ Embracing as far as Rahul is concerned, but many in his camp and the rival camp are red-faced.
Priya Winking Varrier
Remember the girl from the Malayalam movie ‘Oru Adaar Love’ and the winking clip that went viral? Looks like Rahul’s post-hug wink puts him in her league. She described his wink as a “sweet gestur
Look closely, and this is what you see
Bishal Sarkar, who describes himself as an author and body language expert, offers some observations:
- Rahul’s face suggests the hug was planned. But nobody in his party knew: they look genuinely surprised. Even Sonia Gandhi is caught unawares, but she recovers and claps for him.
- When Rahul goes towards Modi, the latter gestures to ask what is happening. It looks like Rahul forcibly hugs Modi, but if you observe a little longer, you notice he is in a hurry to return to his seat. Modi doesn’t hug him back but gives him a pat on the back, and that is just the kind of approval Rahul is looking for.
- Modi holds his ground. He seems to say, ‘Hey, you are coming to hug the PM, and that’s not decorum.’ His heart doesn’t melt at Rahul’s gesture.