Pres Solih’s ‘silly’ photo-op with fake Bollywood actors halts Mumbai traffic

Indian newspapers have extensively reported on President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s ‘silly’ photo op on his recent trip to India.

Mumbai’s Mid Day called the photo op ‘silly’ adding that the visit had brought traffic to a standstill on the Western Express Highway four around three hours.

‘On Thursday, he visited the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) in Navi Mumbai and then went to Film City in Goregaon, for which the police blocked the roads from Bandra to Goregaon from 3 pm to 8 pm. At Film City, Solih visited Bollywood-theme Park where he clicked photographs and spoke to people about Bollywood. From there, he left for the airport,’ the paper reported.

In the two days President Solih was in Mumbai, traffic had to be halted – mostly at peak hours. The paper reported that most stuck in traffic were unaware of the VIP team in the area, in spite of a social media post by the Mumbai traffic and city police the day before.

Photos also showed an auto driver’s meter, which had clocked in over Rs 200 due to the delay.

Pictures from the day showed President Solih with Bollywood impersonators. Reportedly he had spoken to various individuals about Bollywood on this visit.

President Solih was in India from the 1st to the 4th of this month. This was an invitational trip extended by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.