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Happy Birthday Narendra Modi - The Prime Minister's personal gesture towards Olympians
As the nation celebrates PM Narendra Modi's 71st birthday, we take you back to Modiji's personal gesture towards the Indian Olympians.
PM Narendra Modi with PV Sindhu (Source: times of India)
Narendra Modi has emerged as a cult figure in India over the years. Having taken over as the Prime Minister of the country in 2014 and then again in 2019, he is worshipped by millions in India who believe him to be their messiah.
While Modi continues to face staunch opposition by many, it does not really seem to affect his popularity one bit amongst his supporters. From diplomatic foreign trips to motivate the ISRO scientists and sportsmen of the country, Modi has his presence everywhere.
As the nation celebrates PM Narendra Modi's 71st birthday, we take you back to Modiji's personal gesture towards the Indian Olympians.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics was undoubtedly the most successful one in history for India. As the Indian athletes returned from Tokyo, they were hosted for a breakfast at the official residence of the Indian Prime Minister, where the PM himself interacted with the athletes.
As quite a few athletes from the country expressed their disappointment during their interaction with Modiji, the Prime Minister maintained that wins and losses are part of sports, and what mattered was their fighting spirit.
"Never let success get to your head and never let failure go to your heart," the PM said to wrestler Vinesh Phogat.
Narendra Modi's understanding and love for sports were also on display when he asked the silver medallist, Ravi Dahiya, in the minutest of details about his epic comeback during the semifinal.
The Prime Minister even went from table to table to greet athletes in a way they would be comfortable in.
His "Jai Jagannath" to Dutee Chand, "Vanakkam" to Bhavani Devi and "Kem Cho?" to swimmer Maana Patel stood out and showed how important it was to him to make the athletes feel comfortable around him.
And who can forget PM Narendra Modi's personal phone call to the athletes in Tokyo regardless of what their result was!
While the Prime Minister continues to face stern opposition from various quarters, Narendra Modi's personal gestures to the Indian Olympians did showcase how much he wishes to see the Indian flag fly high in the world of sports.
