The Center for Soft Power met IIM Bangalore Professor Ramnath Narayanaswamy and a 20 member Swedish management programme team attending the course - "Understanding India in transition" in Bangalore on Jan 9 and 14.
Speaking to the participants one got a variety of impressions about India. There was a unanimous endorsement of Indian cuisine which most said was the best they had ever eaten.
Among the participants was a Chinese student who has been living in Sweden for the last 15 years. She said that while her parents were not to keen to send her on the programme due to media reports back home, she is happy that she came as she is keen to start a business in India.
The Swedish team made observations about tourism, gender relations, cuisine, cultural differences between the two countries. They witnessed a dance recital by Bharatanatyam dancer Rukmini Vijayakumar as part of their India experience.
