A first for India: Kerala Tourism at the Westminster

British MPs Charmed by ‘God’s Own Country’ at Kerala Tourism Presentation

Kerala’s time-tested Ayurveda and the enchanting backwaters have wooed the British parliamentarians, in a first-time presentation by an Indian state tourism board at the Westminster.

Kerala Tourism made the presentation about the state for the British MPs, at a special meeting held in the British Parliament complex on October 11. The meeting was led by State Chief Secretary Shri Jiji Thomson and Tourism Secretary Shri G Kamala Vardhana Rao, who met the British MPs, including many Indian-origin members of the British Parliament.

Shri Thomson and Shri Rao were in the British capital to take part in the ‘Mayor of London’ event to showcase ‘God’s Own Country’ to a British audience. The cultural extravaganza, which had ‘mohiniyattam’, ‘thiruvathirakali’ and ‘kathakali’ performances, was held at the iconic Trafalgar Square on the same day.

“It was an honour for Kerala to address the British MPs in the parliament complex,” said Shri Thomson. “The MPs evinced great interest in Kerala and admired our top status on the global tourism map,” he added. Among those present were Shri Virendra Sharma, Indian-born MP of the West London constituency Ealing, Southall, and Stephen Timms, Member of Parliament from the suburban East Ham seat.

“We wanted to directly address the British parliamentarians and tell them why the United Kingdom is the biggest tourism market for Kerala in the world,” Shri Thomson said.

Two years ago, the British royal couple, Prince Charles and wife Camilla Parker Bowles, had visited Kerala, watching Kathakali in Kochi and celebrating the 65th birthday of the Prince of Wales at the backwaters resort of Kumarakom.