"When I hear Indian music, I start dancing" :::::: Indonesian President's 'Indian DNA' quip at banquet leaves Modi and Vice Prez Dhankhar in splits

"A few weeks ago, I had my genetic sequencing test and my DNA test, which determined I have Indian DNA. 

Everybody knows that when I hear Indian music, I start dancing. It must be a part of my Indian genes," said Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto during a dinner hosted in his honour by President Droupadi Murmu.

Subianto's remarks left the guests, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar in splits.

Subianto, who was in New Delhi as the chief guest for India's 76th Republic Day celebrations, used the occasion to highlight the enduring cultural and historical ties between India and Indonesia.

Subianto praised PM Modi’s focus on eradicating poverty and uplifting marginalised communities, saying, “His commitment to alleviating poverty, helping the weakest parts of your society, is an inspiration for us. I wish the people of India prosperity, peace, and greatness in the coming years. I hope Indonesia and India continue to be close partners and friends.”

"A very important part of our language comes from Sanskrit. Many Indonesian names are Sanskrit names. In our daily lives, the influence of ancient Indian civilisation is very strong," he said, emphasising the shared heritage between the two nations.

He also expressed his admiration for PM Modi's leadership, calling it "inspirational". 

He said, "I am very proud to be here in India. I am not a professional politician, I am not a good diplomat, I say what is in my heart. I came here for a few days but learnt a lot from Prime Minister Modi's leadership and commitments."

This was the first visit of President Prabowo to India in his current capacity as President and coincided with the 75th Anniversary of India-Indonesia Diplomatic Relations, a milestone that reflects the enduring friendship and deep-rooted historical ties between the two countries. 

"Both leaders (PM Narendra Modi and President Prabowo) recalled that H.E. Sukarno, the first President of Indonesia, was the Chief Guest at India’s first Republic Day in 1950. 

This is a testament to our longstanding ties and strong democratic tradition. 

A distinguishing feature of President Prabowo’s visit was the participation of 352 Indonesian Armed Forces personnel comprising both the marching contingent and marching band in India’s Republic Day Parade.

"Both leaders strongly condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing cooperation in combating this threat through bilateral and multilateral initiatives. 

They underscored the importance of strengthening global efforts to combat terrorism, including eliminating terror financing and preventing the recruitment of terrorists, without any double standards. 

Both leaders emphasized the need for all countries to work collectively to deny safe havens and support networks to terrorist groups, in accordance with international obligations and commitments," a Joint Statement said.

Both leaders called upon all countries to take concerted action against UN-proscribed terrorist organizations and their affiliates. 

Recognizing the evolving nature of security challenges, the two leaders agreed to work together in preventing the spread of online radicalization and strengthening mechanisms to counter extremist ideologies.  

Recalling their last discussion on intensifying infrastructure development between the two maritime neighbours, the two leaders called for enhanced connectivity and welcomed India’s Development Partnership with the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) as a significant initiative towards this end.

ends