Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese in Melbourne. Photograph: Hollie Adams/Reuters
The throb of the drum beats intensified as the crowd of 25,000 Indian Australians prepared to welcome India’s prime minister back to Melbourne after more than a decade.
As Narendra Modi and Anthony Albanese stepped on to the red carpet at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night, twinkling phone lights illuminated the feverish audience as they chanted “Modi, Modi, Modi.”