If there is one foreign leader who has the inside track for organising the kind of over-the-top, boisterous public reception Donald Trump revels in, it has to be Narendra Modi – the Indian prime minister who in many ways is a kindred spirit to the showman US president.

Modi’s government is pulling out all the stops, at an expense of some US$14 million, ahead of the maiden two-day trip by the US president and First Lady Melania Trump that begins in Ahmedabad on Monday. The first day of Trump’s jam-packed itinerary includes a visit to Mahatma Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram – where he will receive the gift of a spinning wheel – followed by an exuberant mass rally with Modi to open the world’s largest cricket stadium. Capping off his first day in India will be a dusk visit with Melania to the 17th-century monument to love, the Taj Mahal.

Known for his disdain for far-flung trips, the US president has uncharacteristically raved about his upcoming Indian sojourn.

Read the full article in South China Morning Post.