New Delhi: Shashi Tharoor had an “extraordinary experience” on Wednesday.
The Congress took to his X handle to narrate the unexpected encounter with a monkey in his garden.
As he was sitting in the garden on a winter December morning, reading his morning newspapers, “a monkey wandered in, headed straight for me and parked himself on my lap,” Tharoor wrote.
“He hungrily ate a couple of bananas we offered him, hugged me and proceeded to rest his head on my chest and dozed off,” the Thiruvananthapuram MP narrated.
Sometime later, as Tharoor got up, the monkey “leapt off and loped away.”
Admitting that he was a tad concerned initially about the potential risk of a monkey bite, Tharoor said the encounter turned out to be “peaceful and gentle”.
“Reverence for wildlife is ingrained in us, so though I was a bit concerned about the risk of a monkey-bite (which would have necessitated rabies shots), I stayed calm and welcomed his presence as non-threatening. I am gratified that my faith was borne out and our encounter was entirely peaceful and gentle,” Tharoor wrote.
The entire episode played out over some time, giving enough time for pictures to be snapped, which Tharoor shared along with his post on X.
Had an extraordinary experience today. While i was sitting in the garden, reading my morning newspapers, a monkey wandered in, headed straight for me and parked himself on my lap. He hungrily ate a couple of bananas we offered him, hugged me and proceeded to rest his head on my… pic.twitter.com/MdEk2sGFRn
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) December 4, 2024
Netizens reacted with a mix of sarcasm, good humour and respect.
Here are some of the reactions on X:
He wanted to learn English from you
— Defaulter (@jabjago) December 4, 2024
Love can be..
Expressed without words..❤️ pic.twitter.com/UG7ByGnl5t— ◔‿◔ (@KhusshRaho) December 4, 2024
A cameraman was available to record this for posterity too. Well planned with bananas ready. Was it a pet I wonder?
— Ashis Kumar Datta (@DattaAshis) December 4, 2024
P.S. Sharing your Monkey Baat I presume 😊
— Madhavan Narayanan (@madversity) December 4, 2024
When even the wild life trusts Dr.Shashi Tharoor’s calm demeanor ! Magic happens always when Dr.Tharoor is around !
— Dr.Shylaja C V (@shylaja_c) December 4, 2024
Monkey gave you more respect than Rahul Gandhi ever
— Lady Khabri (@KhabriBossLady) December 4, 2024
Shashi Tharoor doing “Monkey-Baat” and of course better than Mann ki baat!
— Prashant Kanojia (@KanojiaPJ) December 4, 2024
