At a gala dinner framing the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim sat at a piano and sang a 1965 Kishore Kumar love song — not as performance, but as expression. In a gathering otherwise devoted to declarations on multilateralism and global conflict, the moment reminded the room that the deepest diplomacy between nations is often carried not in treaties, but in shared memory and song. India and Malaysia left the summit with a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, but perhaps also with something harder to quantify: the warmth of a leader who knows another countr
Malaysia PM Anwar Ibrahim sings Kishore Kumar classic at BRICS summit gala
A lighter cultural moment at the summit, reflecting ties between nations
Mark
So he just got up and sang at a state dinner? That seems unusual for a prime minister.
Mimi
It does, but it's not out of character for Anwar. He's done this before—he sang a Mukesh song at a farewell event in Delhi on an earlier visit. There's a real pattern here of him using Bollywood music in diplomatic contexts.
Luke
But we should be careful about the framing. He sang at a gala dinner, which is a social event, not a formal state dinner in the strictest sense. And Modi hosted it, so there was clearly space for that kind of cultural expression.
Mark
What's the actual significance? Is this just a nice human moment, or does it tell us something about the India-Malaysia relationship?
Mimi
Both, I think. They elevated their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during this visit and signed agreements on digital technology and tourism. So the cultural moment sits alongside real diplomatic work.
Luke
Right, but the source doesn't tell us whether Anwar's performance was planned or spontaneous. The caption he posted—"may I have permission to sing"—suggests it might have been impromptu, but we don't actually know.
Mark
Does it matter if it was planned or spontaneous?
Mimi
It changes the reading a bit. If it was spontaneous, it's a genuine expression of his affection for Indian music. If it was choreographed, it's still cultural diplomacy, but it's more calculated.
Luke
And the source doesn't give us that clarity. We know he did it, we know he posted about it, we know Modi and others have noted his appreciation for Indian cinema. But the intention behind the performance—that's not confirmed.
Mark
Fair point. So what we actually know is that he sang, and that this fits a pattern of him engaging with Indian culture in diplomatic settings.
Mimi
Exactly. And that pattern is real and documented. The earlier performances, Modi's comments about his appreciation for M.G.R.—those are all there. The song choice itself, a 1965 romantic classic, suggests genuine familiarity with the material, not just a diplomatic gesture.
Luke
All true. But we should hold the line: we know what he did, we know the context, we know it reflects something about his relationship with Indian culture. What we don't know is how much of this is personal passion and how much is strategic cultural diplomacy. Probably both, but the source doesn't separate them.
The Pulse
- A major geopolitical summit was briefly, beautifully interrupted when a sitting head of government stepped to a piano and sang a decades-old Bollywood romantic classic.
- Anwar's casual social media caption — asking his 'teacher' for permission to sing — went viral, drawing attention to what observers recognize as a genuine, not performative, love for Indian film culture.
- This was not an isolated gesture: Anwar has sung Hindi and Tamil film songs at formal diplomatic events before, tracing a consistent cultural thread through his engagements with India.
- Beneath the musical moment, the visit carried real diplomatic weight — bilateral talks with Modi elevated India-Malaysia ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with signed agreements on digital technology and tourism.
- The BRICS summit's New Delhi Declaration addressed wars, sanctions, and multilateral governance, making Anwar's Kishore Kumar interlude the summit's most human and widely shared moment.
At a gala dinner framing the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim sat at a piano and sang a 1965 Kishore Kumar love song — not as performance, but as expression. In a gathering otherwise devoted to declarations on multilateralism and global conflict, the moment reminded the room that the deepest diplomacy between nations is often carried not in treaties, but in shared memory and song. India and Malaysia left the summit with a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, but perhaps also with something harder to quantify: the warmth of a leader who knows another country's cinema by heart.
At the gala dinner for the 18th BRICS Summit, hosted by Prime Minister Modi at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim did something no one quite expected: he stepped to a piano and sang. The song was "Khwaab Ho Tum Ya Koi Haqeeqat," a romantic Kishore Kumar classic from 1965. In a summit otherwise consumed by declarations on global economic governance and regional conflict, the moment landed differently — lighter, warmer, and entirely unscripted in feeling.
Anwar posted the video on X with a caption in Malay that translated loosely as, "Teacher, may I have permission to sing for a moment, okay?" The post spread quickly, and those who follow his diplomatic style recognized a familiar pattern. This was not his first Hindi film song in a formal setting. He has previously performed a Mukesh classic at a farewell event in Delhi, and when Modi visited Malaysia earlier in 2026, Anwar hosted a lunch where a Tamil song associated with the legendary M.G. Ramachandran played — a detail Modi later noted publicly. The affection appears genuine, rooted in a cultural world that has long connected India and Malaysia at the level of people, not just policy.
The visit carried substantive weight alongside the music. Anwar and Modi held bilateral talks on the summit's sidelines, and the two countries elevated their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, signing agreements on digital technology and tourism. The BRICS summit itself adopted the New Delhi Declaration, addressing conflicts in West Asia, multilateralism, and the consequences of unilateral trade measures. Against that formal backdrop, a prime minister singing Kishore Kumar at a piano offered a quieter argument: that between these two nations, culture has always been part of the diplomacy.
At the gala dinner for the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on Saturday, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stepped up to a piano and sang. The song was "Khwaab Ho Tum Ya Koi Haqeeqat," a 1965 Kishore Kumar romantic classic from the film Teen Devian. Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted the evening at Bharat Mandapam, and the moment—informal, musical, entirely unexpected in the context of a major geopolitical gathering—broke the formal rhythm of the summit's discussions on global economic governance, international cooperation, and regional conflict.
Anwar later posted video of the performance on X with a caption in Malay: "Guru mintak izin nyanyi kejap ok!"—"Teacher, may I have permission to sing for a moment, okay?" The post drew immediate attention online, with observers noting what has become a recognizable pattern in Anwar's diplomatic practice: his genuine and sustained affection for Indian cinema and music. This was not a calculated performance for the cameras. It was, by all appearance, something he wanted to do.
The Malaysian leader has a documented history with Hindi film songs in formal settings. During an earlier visit to India, he performed "Dost Dost Na Raha," a Mukesh classic from Sangam, at a farewell event in Delhi. When Modi visited Malaysia in February 2026, a Tamil song from the 1975 film Naalai Namathe—which starred the legendary actor-politician M.G. Ramachandran—played during a lunch Anwar hosted. Modi afterward remarked on Anwar's admiration for M.G.R. and his appreciation of Tamil music. The pattern suggests something beyond diplomatic theater: a real engagement with the cultural world that connects the two nations.
Malaysia attended the BRICS summit as a partner country, and the visit carried substantive weight beyond the gala. Anwar and Modi held bilateral talks on the sidelines, and the two countries used the occasion to elevate their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. They signed agreements covering digital technology and tourism—concrete commitments that anchor the cultural moment in something durable.
The BRICS summit itself addressed major global questions. Leaders adopted the New Delhi Declaration, which took positions on conflicts in West Asia, multilateralism, and the effects of unilateral sanctions and trade measures. Against that backdrop of formal geopolitical negotiation, Anwar's rendition of Kishore Kumar offered something different: a reminder that the ties between India and Malaysia run through culture and people as much as through trade and strategy. The song, the piano, the informal permission asked and granted—these were the lighter notes in a summit otherwise consumed by the weight of global affairs.
Notable Quotes
Guru mintak izin nyanyi kejap ok! (Teacher, may I have permission to sing for a moment, okay?)— Anwar Ibrahim, in a post on X accompanying video of his performance
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