NRG stadium reverberates with chants of 'Welcome Modiji' ahead of Howdy Modi

India's unity in diversity is on full display at the NRG Stadium here ahead of the "Howdy Modi: Shared Dreams, Bright Futures" event, with the Indian diaspora sporting everything from traditional kurtas to modern t-shirts, skullcaps and turbans in the jam-packed venue.

"There is an eagerness, excitement and optimism for the event here. I am expecting to hear how India and the United States are planning to work together, on a lot of different fronts especially business," one of the enthusiastic audience member who had reached the venue well before time told here.

Members of a big group who had arrived from the Hindu Temple of The Woodlands, a society which was one of the first Hindu temples in the Greater Houston area said, "Our hope is that India and America get closer and form strong ties. We have been working for the past two months just to see Modiji here, we are here from the Hindu temple of the Woodlands, it is a historic event and therefore we are very excited to be here. The hopes are really high."

"We are here to listen to Modiji and just him, to see him in our hometown is really special. We worked really hard for this," another member of the group said.

The environment in the NRG Stadium was charged up with the beats of dhol, and chants of 'Welcome Modi', and 'Bharat Mata ki Jai'.

The mega event will witness leaders of the two largest democracies, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Trump, sharing a stage before the largest gathering ever -- over 50,000 Indian-Americans -- for an elected foreign leader visiting the US.

The roughly three-hour-long event is being orgsed at the sprawling NRG Football Stadium, one of the largest in the US, which has served as a venue for some of the most impressive events starring Beyonce, Metallica, to name a few.

The summit, with the theme of "Shared Dreams, Bright Futures" will highlight the contributions of Indian-Americans in enriching the American life for the last seven decades as well as the key role they have played in strengthening relations between the two nations.

The event is not just the biggest event for the Indian Prime Minister but also becomes the biggest event held by any foreign leader in America.

The sheer size and the enthusiasm for the event also marks a big change in the scale of interaction between the Indian Prime Minister with the NRIs living on foreign soil.

The excitement amongst the Indian diaspora can be ascertained from the fact that the people arriving at the stadium included some who had come off from neighbouring Canada to witness the event.

( With inputs from ANI )