Awestruck by the exquisite work of Indian artisans, US First Lady Michelle Obama on Monday went on a shopping spree in the capital at the Crafts Museum, so much so that she almost ran out of cash. Her purchases included pashmina shawls, Madhubani paintings, terracotta models of Lord Ganesha and Nandi, wooden toys Manipuri shawls and bead-necklaces, along with several colourful bangles.
But the 46-year-old First Lady, sporting a green skirt and a black top, probably wouldn’t have worried too much about the extent of her purchases. She told a group of children during an interaction at the museum that whenever there’s a disagreement between her and her husband, it’s her husband who always apologises first.
After visiting Rajghat, Ms Obama reached the Crafts Museum at about 10.50 am. Originally scheduled to spend a mere 30 minutes at the museum, she finally spent close to two-and-a-half hours, enjoying every bit of the unique Indian cultural experience.
Standing at a tall 5 ft. 10 inches, Ms Obama, however, had a tough time manoeuvring through the low doors in the interiors of the museum that has been styled to recreate an Indian village. She was also impressed by the entrance to a Rajasthan “haveli” (mansion) and wooden statues from Andhra Pradesh.
An idol of Goddess Durga inspired her. Looking at it, she told Crafts Museum chairperson Ruchira Ghosh, “Women power...that what the colour (red) which you are wearing.”
“She bought something or the other from each of the stalls. She was so impressed with the crafts exhibition that she wished she had more money to buy whatever she wanted to, to which I told her that she should not bother too much about money and buy whatever she liked,” Dr Ghosh said later. A group of 15 children with a rural background were also present at the museum to interact with Ms Obama.