NEW YORK (AP) – A day after addressing a hushed U.N. General Assembly, where headphone-wearing delegates rarely break into a smile, India’s new prime minister is assured a raucous reception as he addresses a crowd from a rotating stage at Madison Square Garden.
Exhibiting unusual glitz for a visiting leader, Narendra Modi takes a star turn at the famous New York auditorium as he courts the Indian-American community on his first U.S. visit since sweeping to power in May.
Modi is no stranger to a big stage. Backed by huge corporate wealth, he was the center of the slickest election campaign India has seen, drawing huge crowds. Indian media quickly gave him the celebrity-like nickname of “NaMissouri”
Madison Square Garden, however, takes it up a notch. It is home to the New York Knicks basketball team, and was where John Lennon played his last concert. Muhammad Ali fought his first bout against Joe Frazier there.
Organizers expect about 18,500 Indian-Americans to attend. They are among more than 30,000 across the U.S. who had registered for free tickets. The speech will also be broadcast on a big screen in Times Square.