“When Rishi Sunak lands in India at the end of the week, where he will attend the G20 meeting of world leaders, aides expect Britain’s first prime minister of Asian heritage to get a warm welcome. ‘There are places where there are pictures of Rishi up in the streets,’ one aide said. ‘It’s a big deal for them.’ Some sources whisper about the possibility Sunak could be mobbed by local well-wishers,” it read.

“Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty, the daughter of an Indian tech billionaire, are expected to visit and be pictured at Humayun’s tomb, a spiritual landmark for Hindus and a place that is dear to the couple, in images likely to resonate with voters of Indian origin at home. The trip will be a welcome respite for Sunak given the stark contrast between his standing in Delhi and Deptford. The Tories languish 20 points behind in the opinion polls and the PM’s personal ratings have dropped steadily as his brand of bloodless technocratic leadership has, so far, failed to deliver on his pledges or excite the public.”

This is not the first such faux pas.

In 2020, several Western media reports had referenced “swarms” of “marauding macaques”, the “terror” that “troops of aggressive monkeys” will “pounce” on the president and First Lady Melania Trump, and how this will be a potential “disaster” that will “derail” a future trade detail between India and the US.