And then Chelsea said, Happy Holi8217;

JODHPUR, MARCH 21: All she did was smile, watch and smile some more. Twenty-year-old Chelsea Clinton, who spent Holi at the Umaid Bhavan P...

JODHPUR, MARCH 21: All she did was smile, watch and smile some more. Twenty-year-old Chelsea Clinton, who spent Holi at the Umaid Bhavan Palace hotel in Jodhpur may have wanted to 8220;experience a traditional Holi,8221; in the words of External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh, but her tryst with the gulal gunk was restricted to two bright streaks of pink on either cheek. Not even the bunch of erstwhile royals, assorted diplomats, hotel guests and polo junkies, who gathered at the Palace lawns for Holi, were allowed to touch Chelsea except the former Maharani of Jodhpur, Hemlata, who arrived from the Jodhpur airport in a black Cadillac amidst a cavalcade of nearly 20 vehicles.

8220;I think the brief to Chelsea and her Security Service agents was to not get photographed playing Holi, in case it was used in a foreign publication, and I think the brief was from her mother,8221; later joked the former Maharaja of Jodhpur, Gaj Singh, pausing in between to spit into a gilted, hand-held spitoon.

But it was Chelsea, dressed in black trousers and a powder-blue top, bright smile encased in even brighter coral lipstick, who was the true royal8217; of the day 8212; from the welcoming conches and drum roll, to the ghumar dancers who entertained her as she stood, smiling and waving, from the first floor of the palace.

8220;Chelsea is enjoying the day at different levels. She8217;s learning a lot about the religion and culture of India, and appreciates the warmth and hospitality of Jodhpur,8221; said US deputy Secretary of State, Strobe Talbott, who was earlier overheard mentioning how Chelsea had 8220;keen political instincts8221;. Talbott accompanied Chelsea, along with her maternal grandmother Dorothy Rodham, the American Ambassador to India Richard Celeste and his wife, Jacqueline Lundquist, and a horde of Secret Service agents on their Jodhpur junket. Nearly 500 personnel from the Jodhpur police force had been deployed for security. The only mediapersons allowed to get up close and personal to the First Daughter were a White House correspondent-photographer team from The Washington Post.

Indicating quite seriously that the joint Indo-US celebration of Holi was a step towards furthering ties with the subcontinent 8212; 8220;we8217;re taking forward what Mr President has started8221; 8212; Talbott later tucked into Indian cuisine with Jaswant Singh and his family, at a private lunch hosted by the Minister for Chelsea at the Risala restaurant.

Singh, who apparently went off to visit his mother while Chelsea watched people getting dunked into tubs of colour, preferred to stay away from the Holi scene. 8220;I thought it would be a good idea for her Chelsea to come here for a day, since the other party Clinton and his A-list persons, minus Talbott went to Dhaka,8221; explained Singh, who had invited them to Umaid Bhavan.

When asked how she was enjoying her second visit to the country, Chelsea smartly retorted, 8220;Happy Holi,8221; before she was whisked away by security personnel. Later, she demurely sat under a shamiana, posing the occasional question to the erstwhile royals who8217;d set up camp around her, and abstained from trying out the bhang-laced snacks. But she did say she was 8220;enjoying Holi very much,8221; before heading out to Mehrangarh fort, which houses a museum, for a bit of sight-seeing, and then flying back to the Capital in a chartered plane. The trip, incidentally, was planned in less than a week, after President Clinton8217;s subcontinent itinerary was finalised.

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In the four hours that she spent at the hotel, Chelsea disappeared into her suite many times to 8220;freshen up8221; and took a lot of interest in the festive activities. 8220;She is a very charming girl, and I8217;m sure would have loved to play Holi in other circumstances,8221; said Gaj Singh. Apparently, she was missing mum Hilary 8212; campaigning in the US for a Senate seat 8212; who would have 8220;loved to see the colour spectacle,8221; added Singh.

And was Papa Clinton missing anything? 8220;He definitely is. And he has a very good source to tell him what he missed when he gets back in the evening.8221; This, from strategic dialogue expert, Talbott.