A Prime Minister on course to paint India saffron; his lieutenant and the country’s home minister; 20 chief ministers. Bengal’s new chief minister and his cabinet.

More than 50,000 people gathered to witness history.

The oath ceremony at Brigade was India’s most-watched event on Saturday. Metro captures the most memorable bits.

Modi moment

The clock struck 10.45am. The rear of Brigade erupted with an all-too-familiar chant: “Modi-Modi”.

Thousands rushed to the edges of the two hangars. Hundreds stood on chairs for a clear view of their leader and the perfect click.

SPG guards rushed up and down the open aisle between the hangars. Seconds later, Narendra Modi emerged.

In a white kurta and navy blue jacket, Modi rode an open SUV down the aisle towards the dais. He was flanked by chief minister-designate Suvendu Adhikari and state BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya.

Modi first entered an antechamber behind the dais. He emerged on stage around 11.05am. Again, a deafening roar — and a cue for those seated on stage to rise. Modi did not give a speech. But his message was loud and clear. He performed a panchanga pranam before the rapturous crowd.

After taking oath, Suvendu walked up to Modi again and bowed before him. Modi embraced him warmly.

He also gave Dilip Ghosh a thump on the back. Ghosh is credited with helping the BJP make inroads into Mamata Banerjee’s bastion.

Saffron signal

The Brigade stage had two chief ministers in saffron. One was Uttar Pradesh’s
Yogi Adityanath. The other was Suvendu.

Suvendu, usually seen in white, chose a saffron half-sleeve kurta for the swearing-in ceremony.

The symbolism was hard to miss. Many BJP hardliners — leaders and supporters — have called for a “Yogi model” in Bengal.

A state BJP leader said: “Don’t read too much into it. Today was a momentous occasion. It is a civilisational shift for Bengal. Suvendu da’s attire was befitting the occasion.”

Yogi Adityanath, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Kshudiram Tudu

Loudest cheers

After Modi, the loudest cheers were reserved for two chief ministers of BJP-ruled states.

Around 10.25am, among the first dignitaries to arrive on stage were Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta and Bihar’s Samrat Choudhary. The crowd barely reacted.

But when Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma arrived, Brigade erupted with chants of “Bharat Mata ki Jai”. A smiling Sarma waved back.

The same scenes played out when Adityanath arrived around 10.54am. Another massive roar followed. Adityanath acknowledged the crowd with a wave.

Another loud applause came after Suvendu took oath and walked up to Adityanath, who handed him his saffron scarf.

Star presence

Tollygunge was represented by Prosenjit Chatterjee, Jeet, Jisshu Sengupta and Mamata Shankar, among others. Hindustani classical vocalist Ajoy Chakrabarty was also at Brigade.

“Several others, including Kaushik Ganguly, Rituparna Sengupta, Tota Roy Chowdhury and Anupam Roy, could not reach the venue because of traffic curbs and the huge turnout,” said Rudranil Ghosh, actor and BLP MLA from Shibpur.

During the Trinamool regime, much of Bengal’s entertainment industry — from films to TV — was a regular presence at Mamata Banerjee’s programmes.

Since May 4, the winds of change appear to be blowing through Tollygunge as well.

Asked what she expected from the new government, Mamata Shankar said: “Love all, love every religion. May all of us have patience. May we leave the path of violence.”

Oath in Santhali

Kshudiram Tudu, the MLA from Ranibandh in Bankura, made history by taking the ministerial oath in Santhali.

A first-time MLA, the 55-year-old won the Scheduled Tribe-reserved seat by more than 50,000 votes, reflecting the BJP’s strong performance in the Jungle Mahal region. On the dais, Tudu wore traditional Santhali attire.

“It is a day of great happiness for us. Years of struggle have borne fruit,” he later said.

Tagore tribute

The only Bengali icon on the dais was the birthday boy.

A large portrait of Rabindranath Tagore formed the centrepiece as Tagore songs played in the background. The first thing Modi did after stepping onto the stage was walk up to the portrait and offer flowers.

Some in the audience described the BJP government’s debut in Bengal as “as big an occasion as Tagore’s birth anniversary, if not bigger”.