From Tagore epigrams to Shantiniketan bag: PM, Swedish counterpart exchange gifts

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met European business leaders in Sweden as officials said they voiced strong interest in India. The visit also highlighted a shared Tagore link with Sweden through an exchange of culturally significant gifts.

In Short

• The exchange happened during the European Round Table meeting in Gothenburg
• Kristersson gifted Modi replicas of Tagore's handwritten poems from Sweden
• PM Modi gave Kristersson Tagore's works and a handcrafted Shantiniketan bag

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Swedish counterpart Ulf Kristersson exchanged specially curated gifts inspired by the legacy of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore during Modi’s visit to Sweden, adding a cultural touch to high-level discussions on trade and investment.

The exchange took place on the sidelines of the European Round Table industry meeting hosted by Volvo Group in Gothenburg, where top European CEOs also praised India’s economic transformation and reform-driven growth story.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (West) Sibi George said business leaders and senior industry executives expressed strong interest in India and appreciated the sweeping changes brought about by sustained reforms over the past several years.

“In PM Modi’s meetings today with the CEOs and other senior leaders, they all highlighted their interest in India,” George said, adding that industry leaders acknowledged the “complete transformation” India has witnessed in recent years due to policy continuity and economic reforms.

The high-level CEO round table was attended by Modi, Kristersson, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, senior European industry leaders, and representatives from leading Indian and European companies.

However, it was the Tagore-themed exchange of gifts that stood out during the visit, underscoring the long cultural ties between India and Sweden.

Kristersson presented Modi with a specially curated box containing replicas of two handwritten epigrams by Tagore, accompanied by an explanatory note and a rare photograph of the poet taken during his 1921 visit to Uppsala University in Sweden.

Sharing details of the exchange on X, Kristersson said he had the “honour” of presenting Modi with facsimiles of Tagore’s handwritten poems discovered in Sweden’s National Archives. He said the poems bore testimony to the “long-standing relations” between Sweden and India, while also recalling Tagore’s Nobel Prize in Literature win in 1913.

In return, PM Modi gifted the Swedish Prime Minister a set of Tagore’s collected works along with a handcrafted Shantiniketan bag featuring motifs personally chosen by Tagore to support local artisans.

George said the handcrafted bag reflected Tagore’s philosophy that art should not remain confined to galleries, but should become part of everyday life by blending aesthetics with utility.

PM Modi is currently in Sweden as part of the third leg of his five-nation tour and is scheduled to travel to Norway later on Sunday.

- Ends