MUMBAI: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, fondly called ‘Didi’ by many, joined crores of Indian women as she turned sister of superstar Amitabh Bachchan by tying rakhi on his wrist at ‘Jalsa’ in Mumbai on Wednesday.
Banerjee, who as the head of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) is on a three-day Mumbai visit to the city, spent quality time at the residence of Bachchans in upscale Juhu.
During her 45-minute stay, she interacted with the Big B, his wife Jaya Bachchan, son Abhishek Bachchan, daughter Shweta Bachchan Nanda, former Miss World Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and granddaughter Aradhya.
Sources in TMC told The New Indian that she presented a shawl and some of West Bengal’s famed sarees to the Bachchans, and received some gifts in exchange.
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Like any traditional Indian home, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan played the role of a perfect daughter-in-law. She herself prepared tea and served it to the chief minister and others at the gathering. Abhishek’s sister Shweta Bachchan Nanda – who runs fashion label MXS – served her homemade Maharashtrian staple food, Bhelpuri and Shevpuri.
“However, Didi did not eat anything. She just had a cup of tea,” informed a TMC leader familiar with the particulars of the meeting.
Banerjee inquired about Senior Bachchan’s health and advised him to prioritize health over his passion of acting at the age of 80. Though she said she would love watching him host ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ (KBC).
The ‘Sholay’ actor and Banerjee discussed at length the culture of football in West Bengal and about the temples of Tarapeeth, Dakshineshwar, and Kalighat.
During the chat, Aishwarya and Shweta inquired about her foot injury during campaigning for the state Assembly elections in March, 2021. She explained the incident in detail and showed pictures of the injured foot in his mobile phone gallery.
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She posed for photos with the Bachchan family and invited Aishwarya to the Kolkata Film Festival scheduled to be held in December.
Later, she visited Matoshree and tied rakhi to Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray.