- To be celebrated on 1st August 2021
Swiss Embassy in India will celebrate its National Day, virtually this year. The decision has been taken due to the restrictions placed by the authorities in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. People are asked to attend the National Day celebration from their own home using social media platforms and Swiss authorities will air virtual programs on the day.
On this occasion, the Embassy of Switzerland to India and Bhutan, the Consulates General of Switzerland in Mumbai and Bangalore have invited Swiss and Indian nationals to be a part of a virtual program on August 1st, 2021. This would bring together fellow Swiss citizens and friends of Switzerland. The virtual celebrations will be hosted on the official website of Swiss Embassy. It is open to all without prior registration. Since this is not a live broadcast event, the videos would be available for viewing anytime during the day from 8 am onwards at https://www.missione1agosto.org/en/switzerland-in-india-and-bhutan/ on Sunday, August 1st, 2021from 8 AM (IST) onwards.
The virtual presentation includes a special message by Dr. Ralf Heckner, Ambassador of Switzerland to India and Bhutan. It also includes a unique musical composition that crosses borders, cultures and languages. There would be a virtual journey to picturesque locations of various parts of Switzerland where some iconic Bollywood movies and songs were shot. There would also be a rapid fire quiz with Swiss officials.
His Excellency Othmar Hardegger, Consulate General of Switzerland in Mumbai
His Excellency Dr. Ralf Heckner, Ambassador of Switzerland to India and Bhutan has invited prominent people of India including government officials, diplomats of other countries and media people to participate in virtual celebration. His Excellency Othmar Hardegger, Consulate General of Switzerland in Mumbai has also extended an invitation on behalf of the Swiss Ambassador to the foremost people of Mumbai to participate in the virtual event.
Indo Swiss Relations: It may be noted that the first diplomatic engagement between the countries was a Treaty of Friendship signed at New Delhi on 14 August 1948. Diplomatic missions between the two countries were opened in Bern and Delhi soon after its conclusion. Switzerland established its Consulates General in Mumbai and Bengaluru. India has a Consulate General in Geneva. Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi visited Geneva in 2016 to strengthen the bilateral relations of the two countries. Later, the Swiss President Doris Leuthard visited New Delhi, India in August 2017 to improve relations.
Favourite location for Hindi Movies: Although Indian cinema has been shot in a variety of foreign settings, the use of Switzerland as a backdrop for many scenes in Hindi cinema. Numerous Hindi films have been particularly notable for its unusual prevalence. The small country was consistently featured and involved in the films of India despite its relative distance, lacking a significant diaspora population and not being part of the Anglosphere. This has been attributed to its natural beauty, particularly the snowy mountains of the Swiss Alps which are considered an exotic locale for much of India and are heavily featured in romantic scenes. It is estimated that around 200 Indian films have been at least partially shot in Switzerland.
This phenomenon started in 1964 with the film Sangam, and some films followed in its footsteps. With the liberalisation of the Indian economy, there was a major boom in the use of Switzerland as a setting in the 1990s, with Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) and other Yash Raj films being considered the ones that cemented Switzerland in the Indian public. The Swiss government and tourism associations have successfully used these images of Switzerland to successfully promote travel from India, with financial incentives being offered for further productions to be filmed there. Although Indians make a small share of tourism in the country, their numbers are growing rapidly, with “Bollywood tours” becoming popular throughout central Switzerland.
A silver plaque dedicated to Indian filmmaker Yash Chopra: The Swiss government honoured Yash Chopra with the title of Ambassador of Interlaken, making him the first recipient of the award. A silver plaque dedicated to him was placed on the Hoheweg, Interlaken’s main street. He was also bestowed the Swiss Ambassador’s Award. (Source: Wikipedia)
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