MUMBAI, India (Reuters) – Britain’s Duke and Duchess of Cambridge dined with India’s movie elite on Sunday (April 10), capping their first day of a week-long tour of the country.
The Bollywood gala winded down a full day of activity for the royal couple, which included a visit to an impoverished neighborhood in Mumbai and a memorial tribute to the 2008 attack at the Taj Mahal hotel.
“Catherine and I are full of admiration for this diverse and democratic society. No one can come here without being awed and amazed,” Prince William said in remarks to the crowd of actors and business representatives. “No one can come without a sense of excitement about all that India has achieved in the past and the extraordinary promise it holds for the future.”
Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, in turn, told the duke India would leave a lasting impression.
“India, if nothing else, is the most colorful and warmest of the nations that you will ever visit in your life,” he said.
But the night’s glamour did not come without a sombre note, as Prince William offered his condolences for the country’s catastrophic fire that killed a hundred and wounded over 380 at a temple in the southern state of Kerala early Sunday morning. The blaze ignited during a fireworks display celebrating the local Hindu new year.
Proceeds from the gala will be donated to charity.
