Divya A
At the G20 summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted world leaders selected handicrafts from Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, the two states he visited recently for election rallies.
US President Joe Biden was presented with miniature paintings from Kangra, while British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak received Mata Ni Bachedi, a sacred textile made by nomadic communities in Gujarat, officials said.
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Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was presented with a colorful dupatta woven in the northern part of Gujarat, Patan Patola shawl, encased in an ornate sateli box, a wooden craft native to Surat. A double ikat scarf can be worn on both sides. Officials said the figures woven into the scarf given to Georgia Meloni were taken from the Rani Ki Vau staircase in Bataan, built in the 11th century AD.
The miniature Bahari painting presented to Joe Biden is based on the theme of love as a form of devotion. Among other products from the hill state of Himachal Pradesh, a Kinnauri shawl was presented to Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who hosted the G20 summit. The design of this particular piece shows influences from Central Asia and Tibet. Joko Widodo was also awarded the Silver Bowl of Surat.
Agate bowls from Kutch were presented to the leaders of France, Germany and Singapore. The precious stone from which this bowl is made is found in the river basins in the underground mines of Rajpibla and Ratanpur, and is quarried for the manufacture of various ornamental articles.
Prime Minister Modi gifted Pithora, a work of tribal art, to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Pithora paintings, a ritualistic tribal folk art of Rathwa artisans from Chota Udaipur in Gujarat, are based on cave paintings by tribal people, reflecting their social, cultural and mythological life and beliefs. These paintings resemble the dot paintings of the Aborigines of the indigenous communities of Australia.
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