‘The registrations for Ahlan Modi 2024 are now closed,’ says the Ahlan Modi Event Registration Portal. With over 60,000 registrations already in, the organizers have moved on to making the event historic. On the evening of February 13, at Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi, UAE, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be taking part in the ‘biggest Indian community summit’ to improve Indo-UAE relations.

The cultural extravaganza, the title of which means ‘Hello Modi’, will see the participation of over 700 artists and 150 Indian community groups showcasing regional diversity through exhibitions and art forms. Thousands of blue-collar workers from across the Emirates are also involved to send out messages of solidarity. Themes around women empowerment, communal harmony and global brotherhood are also the highlights of the programme. Hundreds of volunteers have teamed up to ensure the purpose of the event isn’t lost. After all, it is supposed to be a celebration of unity, friendship, and the vibrancy of Indian culture.

The next day, on February 14, UAE’s first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi – the BAPS Hindu Mandir – will be inaugurated by Modi, who recently inaugurated Ayodhya Ram Mandir in India, built on the site of a 16th century mosque demolished by Hindu extremists in 1992. A blow on secularism, the temple, however, is a reminder of a painful past to the country’s Muslim minority.

Meanwhile, representatives from 42 nations gathered at the 27-acre mandir construction site on January 29, in response to an invitation by the Indian Embassy in the UAE. The ambassadors and diplomats got to witness the finishing touches of the temple, which was announced by Modi way back in 2015 as the first Prime Minister of India to visit the UAE in 34 years.

Regarding the Ahlan Modi event, India’s ambassador to the UAE, Sunjay Sudhir, has said that tens of thousands of people are expected to throng the venue.

At a similar event in 2019, Modi addressed a massive community rally called ‘Howdy, Modi!’ in Houston, Texas, in which more than 50,000 Indian-Americans participated.