Our Bureau
Vienna
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Austria has been eagerly anticipated by the Indian community, with Radha Anjali, classical Indian Bharatanatyam dancer and President of the Austro-India Association, expressing enthusiasm for the visit and highlighting that it will strengthen relations and friendship between the two countries.
Radha Anjali will also attend the community event during PM Modi’s visit.
Radha Anjali said that she has been practicing Bharatanatyam for the last 40 years in Vienna and described the dance form as a “cultural connect” between both nations.
“It’s a cultural connect between India and Austria. Yes, the cultural link between countries is very important. And Bharatanatyam can also build a bridge between the two countries,” Radha Anjali said.
In response to a question regarding PM Modi’s visit, she said, “We are very excited and I think it is very good and very important for the relations between the two countries and to build up the friendship more, which has been there in the past but maybe we can build up more friendship for the future.”
“The Austro-Indian Association, for 60 years, has been working for friendship between the two countries on different levels. And we just recently had our 60th anniversary. I’ve been president since 2008. The work we are doing is to promote Indian culture in Austria with dance performances, concerts, lectures, and information about India,” said Austro-India Association President.
Following his engagements in Russia, Prime Minister Modi will proceed to Austria on July 9-10. This visit marks a historic occasion, as it will be the first time an Indian Prime Minister has visited Austria in 41 years.