Prime Minister Narendra Modi scaled another political peak on June 8. His address to the US Congress not only swept the American senators off their feet but had the whole nation in thrall.
The Prime Minister chose to address the august house in their language, and not in Hindi. This was nothing short of a coup. Even bolder was his decision to go extempore. It was very courageous, and required making the right points, at the right time, and using the right words.
Modi excelled. The American senators rose nine times from their seats to applaud. There is little doubt that Modi’s address to the US Congress will go down as a defining moment in Indo-US relations. It was emotional, it was powerful, and put India on the same platform as the US when it came to ideals such as liberty and freedom. The Prime Minister established a new connect with the American political class. With this address, his imprint on the global stage became even more sharply etched.
The address was spellbinding, and must have left a deep impact upon all Indians who must have watched it live. It must also have put great pressure on newspaper editors to capture the magic of the address in cold type. To convert it into an eye-stopping headline must have been even more difficult.
The final result this morning was not very exciting. The headlines were too straight, with most newspapers preferring to stick to hard news. The Telegraph chose to be statesman-like; its side story on the reference to Siri was more fun. The Indian Express and The Times of India too stressed the future. The Hindustan Times, The Hindu, The New Indian Express and The Tribune chose news points for their headlines.
DNA was the exception. It brought out the magic of that speech by stressing the fact that US senators made nine standing ovations. Dainik Bhaskar chose Yoga as its headline idea; but couldn’t capture the humour well.
Here’s how the leading English and Hindi newspapers headlined Modi’s address to the US Congress:
The Telegraph
The Indian Express
The Times of India
The Hindustan Times
The New Indian Express
DNA
The Tribune
The Hindu
Dainik Bhaskar
Dainik Jagaran
Amar Ujala
Please feel free to add your views on the headlines given by Indian newspapers in the comments section.