NRIs plan to watch election results over meal

“Several Indian restaurants in the US are screening the results and I couldn’t think of a better way to find out what happens than over a desi meal that will remind me of home,” said Ketal Bhatia, an entrepreneur residing in Illinois. He is planning to go with a bunch of his friends to watch the episode unfold.

Desi Chatka Indian Street Food in Victoria and Vividh Indian Restaurant in Balga, Australia, will also be screening the results. “The 2019 Lok Sabha election results will be out on May 23. To witness the tussle between two major parties, we are hosting a live streaming from 11 am onwards,” said the management of the latter.

Another hotel in Dubai is even offering ‘Buy One-Get One Free’ offer on all drinks and food from 9 am to 11 pm on the big day. Iyappa Nair, an employee of the hotel, said many of his friends from Kerala, who currently reside in the Gulf, will be visiting for the event. “As it is Ramzan, we are even offering Iftar at discounted prices. We want our diners to be comfortable while watching the live screening of the elections,” he said.

Not just restaurants, student groups in educational institutions are also planning to catch the live action and host debates over the results. Bridge India, a non-profit think tank dedicated to discourse on public policy and political ideas for the betterment of India, is based out of London. “We had a pre-elections event earlier in the year and are hosting a special post-elections event, where expert panelists will dissect the General Election results and share their thoughts on how they see the next five years evolving,” said a member of the team.

Similarly, the Oxford Indian Society is also planning a meet-up to watch the election results. A Facebook post on the page read, “Join in for a live screening of the results of this festival of democracy. Come along and chat about the results with public policy professionals, academicians, and your friends over some free food and drinks.”