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‘Practised for 2 months’: Chinese artistes perform Odissi classical dance to welcome PM Modi, video emerges

Odissi performer Zhang Jinghui, along with her group, performed the dance to welcome PM Modi in China.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping today (Image source: The Indian Express/YouTube)

After a seven-year hiatus, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Tianjin on Saturday to attend the two-day Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in China. Indian and Chinese officials, along with the members of the Indian diaspora, welcomed PM Modi at the Binhai International Airport, with slogans like “Bharat Mata Ki Jai,” and “Vande Mataram”.

Odissi performer Zhang Jinghui, along with her group, performed the dance to welcome PM Modi. Speaking to ANI, Jhinghui shared about her training and her experience of meeting Modi. “I felt a little nervous but it is a great honour for me and my crew… He asked me where I learned this. I learned from India and my guruji is Sanchita Bhattacharya from Kolkata,” she said.

“I have learnt Odissi from my childhood days. I later also learnt it from an Indian guru…I like it. I learnt it for years and also became a performer as well as a teacher…I feel classical dance is like an ocean. If you want to learn it, you have to take it deep, you have to learn many stories…I introduced these things to China’s students and they love it. They want to learn it for long and deep…It is an honour to perform in front of him (PM Modi). This is the first time I will see him. It is so exciting. This is a very good chance,” she told ANI.

Watch here:

#WATCH | Tianjin, China: An Odissi dancer who performed to welcome PM Narendra Modi says, “I felt little nervous but it is a great honour for me and my crew. I have learned Odissi for more than 13 years. We practised this fro 2 months and performed…He asked me where I learned… pic.twitter.com/qLAXeNau30

— ANI (@ANI) August 30, 2025

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Modi is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping today. The meeting comes during the ongoing trade tensions between India and the United States, including a recent move by US President Donald Trump to impose 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods. The Modi-Jinping meet is expected to focus on rebuilding India-China ties following the 2020 Galwan Valley clash, with an emphasis on boosting trade cooperation and promoting regional stability.

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