Explained: This article explains the political background, key decisions, and possible outcomes related to Explained : Congress uses Bollywood barbs to target PM Modi over US diplomacy and Its Impact and why it matters right now.
Lutnick’s account, delivered during an interview on the All-In Podcast, painted negotiations as a race against time, likening President Trump’s deal-making to a staircase where the first mover reaps the richest rewards. According to him, India was given a narrow window to seal the agreement — a deadline that passed without the decisive call from New Delhi.
“Trump is the closer,” Lutnick said, recalling how he urged Indian negotiators to arrange a call between Modi and Trump. “They were uncomfortable doing it, so Modi didn’t call.” In the weeks that followed, the US went on to finalise trade deals with Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, leaving India, in his words, “on the wrong side of the seesaw”.
The remarks come amid a delicate phase in India-US relations, with Trump recently warning that Washington could raise tariffs on Indian goods “very quickly” over New Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian oil — even as both sides have already completed six rounds of negotiations toward a bilateral trade pact aimed at resolving steep tariffs.
For the Congress, the episode offered a ready script: a mix of missed calls, missed opportunities, and a once-celebrated friendship now recast as a cinematic tale of estrangement — complete with songs, sarcasm and a stinging political punchline.
With PTI inputs