Hundreds gather for India's Independence Day celebrations in London

London, August 15

Nearly 1,000 people of Indian heritage gathered at the High Commission of India here on Thursday to celebrate the 78th Independence Day, with music, dance and patriotic chants.

Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Vikram Doraiswami, marked the beginning of the event by unfurling the Tricolour followed by the National Anthem echoing across India House in Aldwych.

He then read excerpts from President Droupadi Murmu's address to the nation on the eve of Independence Day -- a custom at the annual festive gathering.

“It's always a delight and, in a sense, a privilege to host as many of our expatriate citizens, as well as, friends of India from the overseas citizens community here in London. Today's turnout was genuinely more than we had expected,” Doraiswami told PTI.

“It all worked really well. People were in really good spirits, and I think the President's message hit the right tone with its discourse about equity, inclusion and the idea of an India where the growth of political democracy is linked with the strengthening of social democracy. A very good message to land today and I think the audience really enjoyed it,” he said.

Reflecting on the India-UK relationship, the envoy noted that the bilateral partnership is in a “very good place” in a year that witnessed general elections in both democracies.

“It's increasingly visible that on both sides the relationship is seen to be of central importance in the foreign policy construct. There is, in other words, a bipartisan consensus around the idea of strong India-UK relations in both countries,” he added.