Medvedev is visiting Taj Mahal and Bollywood

"Indians who traveled to Moscow, East Berlin or other parts of the Communist Block in the late 1950s and 1960s remember ushanka-wearing Soviet soldiers, who spoke no Hindi and had likely never been to India, being able to sing famous songs from Raj Kapoor films like 'Shree 420' and 'Awara'." - The Wall Street Journal

On the last leg of his two-day visit to India, russian President Dmitry Medvedev blended diplomacy with showbiz. At a meeting with prominent Bollywood personalities, he said Russians have been longstanding fans of Indian movies. He also stressed the need to cement Indo-Russian ties by working closely in the field of cinema, India Today reported.

Medvedev asked the filmmakers to put forward their proposals, including those related to regulation in property and intellectual rights. "We need to translate mutual affinity and warmth into new projects to explore each others' markets. Cinema is a business," he said.

During his stopover at Agra on his way from New Delhi to Mumbai, the photographer in him could not resist clicking pictures of the famous 17th century monument to love. The President, along with his delegation, took a 90- minute tour of the Taj Mahal. " I thank all who preserve this wonder of the world," Medvedev wrote in the visitors' book, India Today said.

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